Too Many Scars
by yaaaaaaayme
Summary: Naruto's dark secret is revealed. He's sent to Hogwarts as a translator for the guard and to spend time recovering. So why is Sasuke with the Dark Lord? Who is Usagi? And what is Itachi's role in all of this? Warning: self harm, depression. Angsty. OotP. HIATUS
1. Underneath what everyone sees

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Angst, angst, angsty, angst, angst.

Angst.

Got the message?

Good.

**Warning:** I'm rating this as Mature because of some of the issues in it, namely: self-inflicted injuries/cutting, extreme character depression, a ton of angst, and other things I haven't really decided yet, but will be too much for some younger readers. Oh, and some language.

Umm… the story starts right after Naruto, Sakura, and Sai find Sasuke, but fail to bring him back (in the manga. I can't remember exactly what happened, so I'll leave the details very vague in that area.) In the Harry Potter storyline, it will take place in Harry's fifth year. (And I'm going by the book, the fifth movie sucked.)

"People Talking"

_People Thinking__ and letters and stuff_

**Kyuubi Talking**

_**Kyuubi Thinking**_

**Disclaimer:** blah, blah, blah, I don't own anything. Meh.

* * *

**Chapter 1:** Underneath What Everyone Sees

Ever have the feeling that your life sucks?

Guaranteed Uzumaki Naruto's is hundreds of times worse.

Ever feel like everyone around you hates you?

Naruto does everyday. Because everyone does hate him.

He promised himself that he'd stop; cutting, that is. What happened to the promise he made to himself to never be weak? He had first started after the first time he failed the test to become a genin. The only one in his class to fail. That was before he even knew about the demon fox sealed inside him.

And even after he knew, the Kyuubi still refused to heal _those_ cuts.

Naruto actually had stopped for a while, when he'd been assigned to team 7 and found something to take his mind off the pain― not to mention that he found people who cared for him, even if they showed it is strange ways. For a while, he was actually happy. And then Orochimaru had come and taken away his happiness. He'd ruined everything; broken up team 7 and killed the Hokage.

Nobody knew what Naruto did to himself when he was alone, but Jiraiya had his suspicions and kept a close watch on the boy while he was training him. Again, the self-abuse stopped. But when he returned to Konoha, that changed again as being home also brought back his awful memories. So much had changed about the village while he was gone.

And some things would never change. Nearly everyone still hated him. Even he couldn't change the way he felt about himself.

The young Uzumaki sat in his darkened apartment, not having the mental energy to get up and turn on the lights. He'd changed out of his bright orange outfit; the color orange made him sick. Granted, it was much better from his former outfit, which was even brighter, but it was still something he hated to wear. How long would he have to play that blissfully gullible idiot? He was now wearing dark blue jeans and a black long-sleeved shirt with a red swirl on it.

Naruto glanced over at his bookcase― yes, he had a bookcase. He was much smarter than he let on. His gaze lingered on a book whose spine read _Advanced Healing Jutsus_. It was ironic, actually, that he would choose that of all books.

**Don't even think about it,** the Kyuubi growled from Naruto's mind. Over the time that he was training with Jiraiya, his connection with the demon fox had gotten stronger and he could now talk with it freely if he concentrated.

_Leave me alone, _Naruto thought back miserably. _It was my fault we failed that mission. MY fault we couldn't bring Sasuke back…_

**You already know this won't solve anything.**

_I don't want it to solve anything! I want it to be a distraction!_

**Dulling one pain with another? You're smarter than that.**

_Leave me alone, _Naruto repeated, getting up and crossing the room to the neat row of books and grabbing the aforementioned volume. He picked it up slowly and turned it so the spine was facing towards him. As he opened the thick book, a small object fell out of the space between the spine and the binding and hit the floor with a metallic sound. He replaced the book and picked up the razor-blade from the floor, then made his way into the bathroom.

Naruto leaned against the sink and glared at himself in the bathroom mirror. Then he slowly rolled up the sleeve on his left arm and held the razor gently in his right hand. Scars ran up his arm between his hand and his elbow. Though he'd been cutting for a very long time, the scars all ran up his wrist, never across. In truth, he was afraid of what would happen if he cut across his wrist.

Until right at that moment.

He was particularly depressed and felt that his usual methods no longer satisfied him. He turned the blade so it was now perpendicular to his wrist and began to move forward.

**You know I won't heal it, brat. **The Kyuubi's voice broke in, making the teen stop. **Cut too deep and I'll only help enough to keep you alive. Barely.**

Naruto realized he didn't care anymore and proceeded with what he was doing. More than halfway through, his shaky hand released the blade, which clattered into the sink. Naruto began to breathe quickly in panic. He'd done just what the Kyuubi had warned him not to do and now the blood was dripping from his wrist much more quickly than it should have been. He looked around wildly and grabbed the closest towel to him from the rack next to the sink and wrapped it quickly around his hand. His mind flashed to the book on healing that was currently in his living room, but he knew he was required to make hand seals for the techniques and the cut on his wrist was limiting the motion in his hand. There was no other choice than to ask for help.

The blood was already coming through the fabric of the towel. He grabbed another one and rewrapped his hand, unknowingly folding the razor-blade into the folds of the towel as he did so.

There was no time to do anything else. He bolted from his apartment and out onto the streets of Konoha, running as fast as his panicking body would allow.

* * *

In the few years since Sasuke had left Konoha, Ino and Sakura had become better friends, though they _were_ still rivals. Currently, they were taking Hinata out shopping to find her something to wear that better suited her figure. Ino was to first to spot the blond running towards them at top speed as the three kunoichi exited a store.

"Hey," she said, nudging Sakura, "Is that Naruto?" Hinata blushed slightly at the mention of his name.

"Hmm," Sakura replied, squinting a little, "It is, I almost didn't recognize him without that ugly orange jumpsuit! Hey, Naruto!" She called out to him as he came closer.

"Why are you running so fast," ask Ino, a hand on her hip, "Did you get caught pulling another prank? What was it this ti―"

She stopped mid sentence. All three of the girls could instantly see something was wrong as he stood before them. His bright blue eyes were incredibly wide and seemed to not be able to focus on one thing for long and his breath was shallow and quick.

"What… what happened?" Sakura asked, genuinely concerned. The trio looked down at his toweled wrist, which he was gripping tightly with his other hand, their eyes almost as wide as his. He followed their gaze to see that his blood was coming through this towel slowly as well. He glanced at their faces again quickly, before bolting off once again in the direction of the Hokage tower. The three exchanged looks, then followed him as closely as they could. Who knew Naruto could be that fast?

They weren't the only ones to witness the exchange and follow the panicking shinobi. By the time he made it to the tower, he had all of the others of the former rookie nine―minus Sasuke― plus Lee's team hot on his tails. He burst in to the Hokage's office, running past the ANBU guards, who were now used to his frequent visits and chose to ignore him.

"What do you want, now," Tsunade said from behind a massive stack of paper work, through which she could only see a small bit of the boy who had run in. Silently, for once.

Naruto? Silent? That couldn't be right… At hearing his quick breathing, she stood up to find out what was wrong and was met with his bright blue eyes, which were now filling with tears.

"What's wrong?" she asked, coming around her desk to stand beside him. Before she had a chance to unwrap the towel, all of Naruto's pursuers burst into her office as well.

"Naruto, what happened?" Sakura asked again. Everyone beside and behind her was trying to catch their breath from chasing after him. They all fell silent and were shocked as he turned to face him, revealing tears that threatened to spill from his eyes. It was rare to see Naruto without a smile or that mock-angry frown that he sometimes used. Everyone knew how bad he was feeling over the whole Sasuke incident, but none of them had ever seen him cry.

He let out a small sound as Tsunade took his arm and began to remove the bloody towel form his wrist and then turned back to face the Godaime. Then she let out a gasp as she saw what was beneath. Her fear of blood had been diminishing, but it wasn't entirely gone. In large quantities, it still made her shake a little. Shake she did. As she unwrapped his hand, something fell out onto the office floor, which she ignored. From their distance, no one else could tell what it was.

Naruto's body had stood up long enough after losing that much blood and gave out before any explanation could be given. The last thing he heard before slipping into darkness was the taunting voice of the Kyuubi, echoing through his head, **I told you so, brat…**

* * *

It was the best sleep he'd had in a while. So free of worry and care… not to mention a warm feeling that was flowing over him. He decided he'd like to stay like this for a while…

Meanwhile, back in the real world, everyone was in a panic. Naruto's wound just wouldn't close. Not without a fight, I seemed.

When he'd collapsed onto Tsunade, everyone ran forward to help. If only Naruto was awake to see that some people actually cared about him.

"We need a place to lay him down," Tsunade had said. Seeing that her desk was too covered in paperwork that even spilled onto the floor, she had carried the boy out of her office. She ordered her secretary to clear off her desk. Once the secretary had cleared the few things that she had there― her desk was much neater than Tsunade's― the Hokage had laid the bleeding ninja onto the desk and began to look over the deep cut. The others present followed her and looked on in shock and horror.

Of course Neji, being the observant one, remembered the object that had fallen to the floor earlier. He approached the area where the towel now lay, and carefully, since he didn't want to risk getting blood on his hands, looked around until he found it, which didn't take very long. He carefully picked it up; even the normal cold Hyuuga couldn't hide his surprise. His eyes widened a fraction of an inch as he turned the object over in his hand. A razor blade is not a usual shinobi weapon.

Neji joined the rest of them outside, the blade still in his hand. He nudged TenTen, whose reaction was about the same. The new information on what was currently in Neji's hand slowly worked its way through the crowd until it reached Sakura at the front; she had been assisting Tsunade. When they told her what he'd found, she stopped and turned to the group.

"What do you mean? Are you saying he did that to himself?" she asked quietly, hardly believing what they were saying.

"Well, Sakura," replied Shikamaru, "It _is_ a very unlikely place for someone to get cut accidentally."

"Let's go," Tsunade announced, cutting in, "It's obvious that we need to take him to the hospital."

And so that's where they presently sat, waiting in chairs that had been pulled into Naruto's room. He didn't wake up that day. Every one of them returned the next day and Sai even floated in once and a while. Just as Tsunade entered to see how he was doing, those who weren't sleeping themselves― Shikamaru, Kiba, etc. ― could detect a change in Naruto's breathing. Sure enough, his eyes opened just a few minutes later.

Naruto stared up at the ceiling with slightly dulled cerulean eyes. He just lay there for a bit, not really knowing where he was. Then he blinked understanding as he remembered what happened and slowly pulled himself to a sitting position. Sakura immediately stopped her pacing and went to the side of his bed.

"Naruto, are you okay, now? What happened?"

He hesitated for a second, and then a smile broke out on his face. "I didn't know you worried about me this much. I'm fine, Sakura." She looked at him for a few seconds; this wasn't a _real_ Naruto smile― his eyes were still dull and he didn't even look happy.

"Naruto," she said quietly, turning away from him, "If you're going to lie and use a fake smile, then just don't smile at all."

After a second of hesitation, his face drooped down again. He looked tired and sad; for once, his face showed what he was actually feeling. Everyone in the room― they were all now awake― were once again surprised. He looked so different without a goofy grin. He sat up more and pulled his knees in, leaning his chin on them and staring blankly at the end of his bed.

"What _did_ happen?" Tsunade asked sternly from the other side of his bed. He stayed silent and continued to stare straight ahead. "Naruto!" she said, a little more forcefully.

"What does it matter?" he asked so softly they could barely hear him.

"It matters a lot." Sakura was now facing him again and speaking with a touch of anger in her voice. "Neji found a razor blade on the floor of Tsunade-sama's office." Her voice then softened a little, "You did this to yourself, didn't you?"

Once again, Naruto didn't answer right away and instead, he just buried his face in the blanket over his knees and hugged them close with his right arm. His bandaged left lay limply by his side.

"I guess you haven't seen the rest of my arm," he finally said, still speaking very quietly. The shinobi in the room exchanged looks. He sat up and lifted his bandaged arm and unwrapped it slowly. Everyone, except for Tsunade, who had already seen it when it wasn't covered in blood, gasped. Several of them put hands to their mouths in shock, Sakura included.

Every shinobi had scars. That was a known fact. But not like these. Scars ran up his arm, all of them straight and in line with his wrist. Except for one. The one that was still bleeding was the only to cut across. Naruto buried his face again.

"H-how long have you been doing this?" Hinata asked, for once speaking up. There was a long pause before he answered.

"Since I failed the genin exam when I was eight."

_Eight? He was so young…_

"Why?" Sakura asked, her voice hardly above a whisper.

"Despite what everyone thinks, I'm not and idiot!" he said, his voice louder and he sat up to glare at her. "I could feel it even before they kicked me out of the orphanage. Their cold stares and loud whispers… You must have noticed! I bet your parents told you when you were younger to 'stay away from that kid, he's trouble'."

The room was silent as a few of them lowered their heads a little.

"…I'm right, aren't I?"

"I always thought it was because you pulled so many pranks," Kiba said.

"I thought that, too." Chouji said, agreeing.

"That doesn't explain why they've hated me since the day I was born…"

"I'm sure that isn't―"

"You don't even know when my birthday is, do you?" Naruto said, cutting Sakura off before she could finish. Her mouth stayed open slightly as she realized she didn't. "Yeah, I didn't think so." He paused. "I was born on October 10."

This sent yet another wave of shock through the shinobi. "Y-you were born―"

"The day the Kyuubi attacked." He leaned back against his pillow.

"And that's why they hate you? Because you were born on that day?"

"No," he said closing his eyes. For a second, they thought he had fallen asleep. He hadn't; he was just concentrating.

_Kyuubi. Can you please heal me?_

**I thought I told you I wasn't going to.** **Unless…**

_If you heal my cut, I promise I'll tell them everything._

**I suppose… but you had better tell them, or else.**

_I will._

He opened his eyes again and sat up, a blank expression on his face. He then held out his arm, indicating for them to look at it again. It was yet another surprise to add to the growing list from that day. His skin was repairing itself and soon there was hardly any trace of the injury, only a faint scar was left. They all looked at him in confusion.

"They don't hate me because I was born on the day of the attack by the Kyuubi." He swallowed against the lump in his throat. "They hate me because I _am _the Kyuubi."

* * *

Dun, dun, DUUN! A bit of a cliffhanger there. (Yes I know he's not _really _the Kyuubi, that's just how he feels.)

To clarify, Naruto is not really and idiot in this fic. While he did fail a lot before, it was only because he didn't have any good training and no one bothered to teach him. He actually can learn very quickly and is really very smart. He's also very strong, since he was training with Jiraiya. He was pretending to be an idiot for most of the time to hide how he really was.

So tell me what you think! The Harry Potter part will begin in the next chapter.

Again, REVIEW!

Bye for now!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	2. No one else understands

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Okay, here we go: chapter two.

The Harry Potter part will begin later in the chapter.

Umm… people have been asking about pairings, so I'll explain now, I guess. EDIT (7/3/08): the pairing has been decided, but it will not be announced until much later. I just feel like the pairing as not that important. This isn't a romance story. And the pairing will take a long time to develop, anyway... a LONG time.

**Warning: **Again, self-abuse, depression, language, mentions of rape, you know, the works!

**Disclaimer: **duh. Oh, and yes, I am using some actual quotes from the fifth book. As long as I say that, no one can sue me, right? Right?

* * *

**Last Time:**

He opened his eyes again and sat up, a blank expression on his face. He then held out his arm, indicating for them to look at it again. It was yet another surprise to add to the growing list from that day. His skin was repairing itself and soon there was hardly any trace of the injury, only a faint scar was left. They all looked at him in confusion.

"They don't hate me because I was born on the day of the attack by the Kyuubi." He swallowed against the lump in his throat. "They hate me because I _am _the Kyuubi."

* * *

**Chapter 2: **No One Else Understands

"Naruto!" Tsunade suddenly yelled, making them all jump. She had turned away from his bed to look out the window for a while. "Is that what you really think?!"

"Naruto, what are you talking about, then? What do you mean you _are _the Kyuubi?" Sakura looked even more concerned than before.

"You know that's not true!" Tsunade was glaring at him.

He smiled weakly. "I know, Baa-chan. But that's what all the citizens of Konoha think, so―"

"None of them know you!" She leaned over the bed and took him by the shoulders, looking directly into his eyes and saying "You are Uzumaki Naruto. Not a demon."

"What exactly do you mean by this, anyway?" asked Chouji, breaking the brief silence. "Why do the villagers think he's the demon fox?"

As was the pattern with the day, no one expected what Naruto did next. He pushed away from Tsunade and stood up, shakily at first. Sakura moved forward to stop him, but he held out his hand in a motion to keep her from doing so, then he stood up perfectly straight, to his full height. He looked about three or four inches taller than he usually did. Before they knew what had happened, Naruto's shirt was off his body and lying on the bed.

They knew he was tan, but…wow. His skin was perfectly smooth― other than his left forearm, he didn't have a scratch on him. And it was safe to say they all expected a pudgy ramen belly. What they saw were perfectly chiseled and defined muscles. Hinata's face― and several others' in the room, including Lee's― turned bright red.

But what really grabbed their attention was what looked like a tattoo in the center of his stomach that swirled and had lines coming off it.

"_This _is why they hate me," he said, not clearing up any of the confusion. He elaborated, "This is the seal that was placed on me the day I was born. Inside me is sealed the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

They all stayed silent and stared at him in disbelief. He misread what they were feeling and took their silence in a negative way.

"See? You hate me, too." He sat down and pulled his shirt back on, then pulled his knees back up to his chest and hid his face. The other occupants of the room exchanged looks. Sakura was the first to speak up.

"We don't hate you. Why would we? You're still the same Naruto."

He didn't respond.

"But I still don't understand why you would do that to yourself!"

"I know, Sakura," he said. His voice was low and full of venom. "You _don't_understand." He still hadn't lifted his head up, so he couldn't see how hurt her expression was. She sat down in an empty chair beside Ino and just looked at him. After a few minutes, he decided to speak again.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. I didn't mean to get mad at you. I just got so sick of it," he mumbled, "So fucking sick of it!" He then proceeded to tell them what was basically a shortened version of his life story. He'd been beaten on many occasions, and often on his birthday, the anniversary of the attack. On his 5th birthday, he'd been beaten then raped by a group of men who were drunk after celebrating the defeat of the Kyuubi. While the Sandaime Hokage had tried to put an end to all this over the years, he couldn't watch Naruto constantly, so the abuse still occurred. He also told them about how he'd always been playing pranks and acting the way he did to hide his pain and insecurities.

When he was finished, all of the girls (plus Lee) had tears in their eyes. Several of the teens were looking down at the floor― they had made fun of him, too. Who would have been able to tell that all of his antics were just an act? The rest of the shinobi just looked at him in shock and sympathy.

Sakura spoke again. "You been through so much," she said softly to the floor. She then paused, like she was deciding to say something. And, apparently, she had decided to do so. "But I thought you were stronger than that. Was that an act, too? It's still not something to kill yourself over…"

He looked up at her and they could see the beginning of tears in his eyes. "I wasn't trying to," he said, his voice cracking just a little, "I would never do that to you Sakura. I would never leave you all alone like―"

He quickly closed his mouth, not allowing himself to finish. But everyone was well aware of what he meant; …_leave you all alone like Sasuke did._

There was yet another awkward silence.

"If you guys don't mind," Naruto addressed the group, "I'd like to be alone."

"No," said Tsunade firmly, "We'll be here."

"We'll stay by you until you regain your feeling of youth!" cried Lee, as usual, ruining a serious moment.

"If you're staying, then I'm leaving." Naruto got up, ignoring Lee, and started to move towards the door, where he was quickly blocked by Shikamaru and Kiba.

_If not the door, then the window…_He turned towards the window to see Tsunade still standing in front of it and Sakura now standing beside her.

"Fine," he said, moving to sit back down on the bed. "If you're going to be so stubborn…" They relaxed just the tiniest bit, thinking he would calm down again. Before he even got to the bed, however, he crouched down on one knee, so suddenly no one had any idea what he was doing.

Until he formed a few seals. Oh.

"If you're going to be so stubborn, then I'll just have to leave my own way." He froze his hands in the final seal and, in a puff of smoke, he was gone.

Who said only jounin could do the transportation jutsu?

xxxxxxxxxxOne Month Later, On the Harry Potter Side of Things…xxxxxxxxxxx

Ever have the feeling that your life sucks?

Guaranteed Harry Potter's is hundreds of times worse.

Harry sat alone in his room, staring blankly at his ceiling, his mind numb of all thought. It had been three days since the dementors showed up in Little Whinging and attacked him and his cousin, Dudley. With only a few short messages from the Ministry of Magic―a disciplinary hearing, the 12th of August?!― and quickly scribbled letters from his friends, Harry had no idea what was going to happen to him. Sure, he'd done magic. But would they really expel him for using a patronus charm to ward of the dementors and save Dudley's life?

Short and quickly scribbled messages seemed to be the only thing he was getting these days. He felt like all his friends had deserted them. Three days and no one had come? It didn't matter that his aunt and uncle had banished him to his room; he didn't have the energy to get up from his bed, anyway. He'd barely even eaten what little food they gave him.

Harry Potter was depressed. He wasn't about to go and cut himself, like he'd heard of some people doing, but he couldn't deny just how low he was feeling. It was just that… know seemed to be able to identify with him… they didn't understand what went on in that graveyard back in June… he shuddered, and then cleared his mind again.

His uncle entered his room, dressed in a hideous suit and wearing an even more hideous and smug grin.

"We're going out." He said

"Sorry?"

"We― that is to say, your aunt, Dudley, and I― are going out."

"Fine," said Harry dully, looking back at the ceiling.

"You're not to leave your bedroom."

"Okay."

"You are not to touch the television, stereo, or any of our possessions."

"Right."

"You are not to steal food from the fridge."

"Okay."

"I'm locking your door."

"You do that."(1)

After one final glare, Vernon was gone. In a few minutes, Harry heard the Dursleys' car pull out of the driveway and leave. All was silent for a while longer. Harry still hadn't moved; it was now dark outside and he hadn't even bothered to turn on his light. No sounds but the creaking of the house and the gurgling pipes…

_CRASH_

He heard a sound, coming from downstairs somewhere, which sounded distinctly like someone breaking a plate. He grabbed his wand and bolted to the stairs. He got about halfway down, holding the wand out in front of him, when he suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"Lower your wand, boy, before you take someone's eye out."

Harry's heart leapt a little bit. They'd finally come!

* * *

After quickly packing his meager belongings and leaving number four Privet Drive on his broom, the nine witches and wizards who composed his guard surrounding him as they flew, they arrived in the middle of a small square.

Remus had left a letter addressed to the Dursleys, who by now must have been in a rage, discovering there was no such thing as the All-England Best-Kept Suburban Lawn Competition, and they had _not_ won any such award.

"Harry," he had said, placing the letter on the table, "I've left a letter telling your aunt and uncle not to worry―"

"They won't."

"That you're safe―"

"That'll just depress them."

"―and you'll see them next summer."

"Do I have to?"

Lupin had smiled but made no answer. (2)

Moody quickly extinguished all the street lights with the silver Put-Outer, which he had borrowed from Dumbledore, to take care of any Muggles looking out their windows. Harry then heard a soft popping sound. It sounded a bit like someone apparating, but it was much quieter.

"Oh, here they come!" said Tonks excitedly.

"They?" asked Harry.

"The rest of our guard."

Two figures, both of whom were no taller than Harry, stepped out from the shadows to greet them.

xxxxxxxxxxxBack in Konoha, several hours after Naruto's Disappearancexxxxxxxxxxx

Nobody could find the blond shinobi. He wasn't in his apartment― Sakura, Ino, TenTen, and Neji were surprised to find it so clean and not littered with empty ramen cups and that he actually owned some very high-level books. He wasn't at Ichiraku's― on second thought, Shikamaru pointed out to Chouji and Lee, perhaps if everything else they knew about him was an act, maybe he didn't like ramen at all. They shuddered. Naruto not liking ramen was just… wrong. Kiba and Akamaru were sniffing all over Konohagakure and Shino was doing a similar thing, but with bugs. Both were still unable to find any trace of him. He was simply… gone.

Hinata had gone off on her own, wanting to be alone. She couldn't believe what Naruto had told them and how depressed he was. Most of what she liked about him was how downtrodden he was, but always kept a smile on his face. Was that smile fake? She realized she didn't even know Naruto, so how could she ever tell him how she felt about him?

_No, _she thought, stopping in the middle of the street, _T__his__ should make me like him more. He needs a friend more than anything!_ Then she ran off again, now determined to find the boy.

Naruto sighed. Did they not even know to look here? Or were they not even looking at all?

_Sasuke would have found me right away, _he thought, sighing as he held the stem of a leaf between his fingers and twirled it slowly. The sun would be setting soon; the shadows cast by the tree he was laying against and the three upright logs nearby growing longer by the minute. He knew they were looking for him. He had overheard one ANBU telling another that they were all to spread out and find him and that there were already some people looking for him. How many of these people actually _wanted_ to find him, he couldn't be sure.

Naruto raised his head and looked at the orange sky. Normally, he hated the color orange because of how it reminded him of his act as the village fool. But right at that moment, felt like he didn't care… it was so peaceful. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Sunsets in Konoha sure are nice…" he said to quietly to the sky.

"They are," said a female voice from somewhere in the branches above him, "Mind if I watch with you?"

"Only if you come down from that tree, you've been there for a few minutes already."

From the green leaves came a female ANBU, wearing a mask that looked like a rabbit.

"You must be pretty good, to have been able to tell I was there." Naruto had the strange feeling that he knew that voice… that he knew _her_… but he just couldn't figure out who it was. She had a strong, authoritative voice that he could have sworn he'd heard before. She had a nice body though, that was obvious, even through her uniform. She sat down beside him and looked in the same direction he was.

"You're not going to bring me back to Baa-chan?"

"No… not yet, anyway."

"What's your name? I feel like I've met you before."

"You can call me Usagi-san."

"Usagi-san… who exactly are you?"

She paused, then turned her rabbit-mask towards him. Her eyes weren't visible through it, but Naruto could tell she was looking directly into his own eyes, and probably smiling. She stood up, then went to stand in front of him, offering out a hand to help him up.

"A friend."

* * *

Yay! Who is this Usagi-san? A mystery woman! Can anyone guess who it is…

Usagi means rabbit, by the way. (EDIT: Apperently, Usagi is a character in Sailor Moon, or something... yeah, when they played that on TV here, I was pretty young, and not really into anime at the time. I can only remember watching it once or twice, and I definitely don't remember the storyline or any of the names. So Usagi in this: no relation to Sailor Moon whatsoever.)

(1)This conversation was taken directly (then shortened) from The Order of the Phoenix (page 45, if you care.) Harry's a punk, ne?

(2)I couldn't resist using this part from the book (page 54). He's such a smartass.

Review, please! It helps me update faster!

Also, if there is anything you want me to clear up, just ask in a review. I read every review and make an effort to reply if needed!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	3. Naruto's mission assignment

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

And now, I present to you… -drum roll- chapter 3!

More angsty goodness!

And just who is this mystery ANBU? Read on to find out!

"Speaking"

_Thinking_

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

* * *

**Last Time:**

"Usagi-san… who exactly are you?"

She paused, then turned her rabbit-mask towards him. Her eyes weren't visible through it, but Naruto could tell she was looking directly into his own eyes, and probably smiling. She stood up, then went to stand in front of him, offering out a hand to help him up.

"A friend."

* * *

**Chapter 3:** Naruto's mission assignment

The two of them stood in silence for a while longer, leaning against the tree and watching the sky until the sun had set and stars emerged in the clear sky.

"How did you know I'd be here?" he asked, whispering, as though speaking too loud would make everything around him disappear.

"I've seen you here before. It's your old training ground, right, Uzumaki-san?"

"Yeah. It brings back memories…"

She laughed, surprising him. She had a nice laugh, though…

"You sound like an old man, speaking like that."

Naruto stared at her for a few seconds, before saying, "You sure do talk a lot… for an ANBU."

"Have you ever spoken to one before?"

"No," he said, thinking about it. He'd never known one of the elite ninja personally.

"Exactly. Plus, I'm new at this."

"But I thought all ANBU were supposed to be void of all emotion."

"Only when we're on duty. Speaking of which…"

"I know. It's getting late and they've been looking for long enough. I'll go to the Hokage tower now… I guess."

"Good."

In a puff of smoke, she was gone. Naruto began to make his way back to the center of the village…

But he took his sweet time getting there.

* * *

A woman wearing the standard ANBU uniform and a mask painted to look like a rabbit stood in the center of the Hokage's office, looking stiff and military-like beside a blond haired boy who stood looking bored with his hands in the pockets of his baggy jeans.

"Naruto, this is Usagi-san."

The two nodded to each other. They'd met.

"I've decided, Naruto. You will accompany Usagi-san on her first mission as an ANBU." Tsunade looked at them over her stack of paperwork.

He looked at her in disbelief. She'd given him a day's rest, then was sending him on an obviously high-ranked mission. But he wasn't one to refuse a chance like this. Still…

"This is a very different mission than most, and not like any you've been on, so before you complain, just listen. You know how to speak English, right?"

"Jiraiya taught me… well, he bought me a book that I taught myself from while he partied. But yeah."

"Good. Usagi-san does not speak English, so you will come along as her translator, since hardly any leaf nins knowhow to speak the language, and those that do can't be spared at the moment."

"I thought it was a dead language."

"On the shinobi continent, yes. You've heard about the world outside, am I right?"

"Yeah… there are seven other continents. The eighth one, where we live, was hidden from the world a long time ago."

"Well, Usagi-san is being sent to Europe to guard a very important person. Since she does not speak English, the language of this person, you will act as her interpreter, and also as a back-up under her command if need be. The mission will take place over the course of one year."

He nodded. It didn't sound very hard… but who was this person that was so important that they needed an ANBU as a guard?

"…and Naruto," Tsunade continued, her voice changing from that of an authoritative leader to a concerned older sister, "While I'm writing in the report that I'm sending you as a translator, there actually is another reason for me to send you on such a long-term mission. I think it would be best for you if you spent some time away from Konoha. While your there, take it easy, okay?"

Naruto nodded again, more slowly this time.

"So my only job is to be a translator?"

"Well… there's another part to it. The person Usagi-san will be guarding is only 15 years old. He attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…"

His eyes widened a fraction of an inch. Of course, he knew about the wizarding world― the shinobi world had once been part of it― but he was surprised that they had gone so far as to hire an ANBU to protect this boy.

"… and starting in September, so will you. There will be times when Usagi-san is unable to guard the boy. So you, Naruto, will be posing as a student so you can be close to him at all times. You'll be in the fifth year."

Usagi-san, who had remained standing perfectly still before this statement, gave a sudden visible start. Naruto was almost stunned.

"But, if I'm in the fifth year… what about what I was supposed to learn in the first four years?"

"You have several weeks until then… if what Jiraiya told me is true, you could easily learn all the required material by the time you leave on the first of August.(1) Plus, magic has some of the same basic concepts as chakra and they stem from the same thing. I'm sure you can master it very quickly. However, there is one thing I have to ask…"

"Yes?"

"Well, I've seen your grades from the academy… care to explain to me why you were last in the class?"

He dropped his gaze and lowered his voice. "I didn't know why everyone hated me until just before I graduated. I just knew… I knew that if I did anything that showed I could excel at anything, then they would hate me more and probably try to kill me. It's happened before…"

He heard a small sound, like a cough, from beside him and he glanced over at Usagi-san. "Sorry," she said, "Please continue."

"Nah, the rest isn't important… I basically just slacked off in school and acted like an idiot. By drawing attention to myself, I avoided drawing attention to myself." He laughed a little, "It made sense at the time…"

"Well, anyway," said Tsunade, "I've ordered all the necessary books and gotten you a temporary wand. When you get to England, you'll have to get a more permanent one. Everything should be back in your apartment. The two of you are dismissed."

Usagi-san nodded, then was gone in a flash. Naruto turned to leave, but before he got to the door, Tsunade spoke again.

"Remember what I said… take it easy."

He nodded but didn't reply and left the Hokage's office in silence. Tsunade rubbed her temples and looked over her still massive pile of paperwork. It was going to be a _long_ night…

Naruto re-entered a few minutes later.

"I almost forgot to ask… what's the name of the boy we're guarding?"

"Harry Potter."

* * *

Naruto awoke to the sound of someone knocking softly on the door to his apartment. _A_ _Visitor__? Nobody ever visits me…_ He blinked few times and then got up and went to the door and looked out the tiny hole at the top of the door. He quickly opened the door in surprise, never expecting who it was to ever come, much less bother to know where he lived.

"Sakura-chan? What are you doing here?"

"Naruto, were you still asleep? It's 12:30!"

He glanced down at his watch (2). "Oh, you're right. Sorry," he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "I was up late studying last night."

Naruto? Studying? Surely it was the end of the world. Sakura had to remind herself that he wasn't the idiot that she had once known. In the past two weeks, he'd changed so much. With the help of his friends― he was surprised he had so many― he'd come out of his shell and no longer hid behind the mask he'd been wearing for years. He hadn't touched a razor since the incident several weeks ago. He'd also gained a fairly large fan club, composed of girls― and some boys― who wanted to be a little more rebellious against their parents and gain the attention of the "dangerous" boy. This was also due to the way he'd changed how he looked. He'd abandoned wearing (read: burned) all of the orange outfits in his wardrobe and now dressed in clothes that were not only easier to look at than bright orange, but actually look _good _on him.

Naruto could have sworn he'd heard the name Harry Potter before, so when he got home he went to look it up. What he found was his name all over the place in all the books that had to do with Defense against the Dark Arts and famous witches and wizards. The boy was a legend! No wonder he required an ANBU-ranked guard.

"Umm… Naruto…" she said, her face getting just the slightest but red, "You might want to get dressed…"

He'd opened the door in only boxers and a white tank top(E1). His face turned red, too.

"Hold on Sakura, I'll go change." He closed the door, but returned a few minutes later wearing his new signature outfit― baggy jeans and a dark colored t-shirt. Another thing had changed about him, too. He'd stopped wearing his Konoha headband on his forehead and instead started a new trend by tying an end of the fabric on the forehead protector to one of his belt loops and just letting it hang down by his side. He was shocking everyone who saw him― the teens and tweens were amazed by him, and almost all the grown-ups were enraged.

He'd promised to spend the day with Sakura and Ino. Hinata would have come, too, but her team was away on a mission.

"So," said Sakura as they walked out onto the streets, "How far have you gotten in those strange lessons?" She was one of the only ones who knew about what he was doing for the upcoming mission.

"Through the third year. Really, I don't see why it takes them that long to learn it, it's not that much more complicated than our most simple jutsus."

"Maybe you're just smart." Those were words she never thought she'd say about him.

They arrived at the Yamanaka's flower shop, where Ino greeted them and joined them on their walk. They weren't going anywhere in particular; the best times are always unplanned. Everything seemed happy peaceful…

In Konoha, at least.

xxxxxxxxxxxxUm... Somewhere...xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Uchiha Sasuke wasn't evil or power-mad… just misunderstood.

Yeah, right.

He wanted power and would stop at nothing until he got it. He realized that after two years with Orochimaru, the old pedophile had taught him everything he could and there was no use to stay with the creepy snake-man any longer.

That's why he killed him. The fight had been over all too quickly and in the end, Orochimaru never got the perfect body that he was waiting for. If there was one thing he did pass on to the Uchiha, it was his affinity for snakes. While searching for a rare and powerful breed, Sasuke came across information on a man who was very similar to Orochimaru, only much more powerful.

Sasuke headed away from the hidden sound village towards the west. He would strike a deal with this man and gain the power he needed.

There was also a rumor that a certain weasel was in the same area, as well. (3)

* * *

There was only one week left until Naruto was going to leave on his mission. He and Hinata were talking― or rather, he was talking and she was blushing― and walking through the streets of Konoha when they heard two familiar voices.

"We came for a surprise visit! Aren't you happy?"

"So troublesome…"

Naruto and Hinata exchanged a look, then went around the corner where they could hear the voices coming from.

"Why didn't you at least tell me you were co― oh, Naruto-kun, Hinata-san."

"Hey, Shikamaru," Naruto said, joking, "You and Temari on a date?"

Shikamaru mumbled something about preferring to just cloud-watch, so Temari supplied an actual response for him.

"I could say the same for you," Temari replied, "So, Hinata; did you finally win Naruto's heart?"

Hinata's face was as red as a tomato and she look like she was about to faint.

"Nah," said Naruto, still oblivious in this aspect, throwing an arm around her and making her look like she was about to explode, "We're just walking. So what brings you to Konoha?"

"My brothers and I were visiting a village not far from here and Konoha is on the way back. We thought we'd stop in and see everyone. We're going to be here until tomorrow."

"So Gaara's here, too?"

"Of course. Him being the Kazekage was the reason we were visiting in the first place. And Kankuro is… somewhere. Oh! There's Gaara!"

The red-head walked up to the group, as silent as ever.

"Hey, Gaara. Long time no see!"

"Naruto. You look… different."

Naruto turned away a little, "It's kind of a long story…"

"I have time."

"Eh… Gaara usually when someone tells you it's a long story, it means they don't want to tell you."

"Your point, Temari?'

"Well, that's what I was―"

"No, I don't mind. I can tell you."

"We'll see you later, Naruto," said Shikamaru, "Come on Hinata, you've heard this. I don't think you want to hear it again." The girl gratefully nodded and followed him away.

"Okay, well…"

He then told them an even more shortened version of what he had told everyone else before. When he was finished, the two siblings from sand stared at him silently.

"We had no idea," Temari whispered, barely audible when speaking so softly in a crowded street. The area was even more crowded than it had been previously as it seemed the passersby had gathered around to hear his story. While it seemed like some of them felt sorry for him, others just walked away, shaking their heads with angry looks on their faces. A few nasty remarks could be heard. Unknowingly, these people had just reinforced his story. Gaara was still silent. "It's so… so…"

"Exactly like me," Gaara said, speaking at last, "You're even more like me than I originally thought."

"But, Gaara… when you say that do you mean―"

"The night before… Yashamaru-san died, I also tried cutting myself." The hesitation before Yashamaru-san's name was barely noticeable, but Naruto heard it. "But the sand barrier wouldn't let me. I'd tried it because I'd never felt any pain before… not physically, anyway. I felt so… inhuman…"

There was a long silence. The villagers had gone back about their business, but they somehow seemed much quieter and more somber. The silence was finally broken by a small beeping sound down by Naruto's side. He looked down at his watch.

"Oh, sorry, guys. I have to go prepare for a mission. See you later." He left, much more slowly than was normal for him.

When he got back to his apartment, he opened up to the page he'd left off on in _Hogwarts: a History_. He'd learned all he was required to and had practiced it until his wand arm was sore and was now learning extra information he thought would be helpful on his mission. He glanced around his apartment, thinking over the story that he'd just told to Temari and Gaara. He'd been forced to relive it again.

There were other places than the bookshelf where he'd hidden razors…

**Having a relapse, kid? **The Kyuubi's growl could be heard in his head, **I thought ****you understood―**

_I'm not going to do anything,_ Naruto thought back firmly, _now__ leave me alone, I'm trying to read._

**Well wake me up when you're done with that dull book… just hearing**** you think**** the words is putting me to sleep.**

_Hey! __I happen to find it pretty interesting!_

**Well **_**you**** would…**_

* * *

Naruto stood in the Hokage's office beside Usagi-san with his few belongings in a black backpack, which he had slung over one shoulder. He was only bringing a few things with him, which included a few changes of clothes, his temporary wand, and several books. His hitae-ate and weapons pouch were hidden at the bottom of his backpack.

It was the morning of August first, the day he and Usagi would leave for London. His friends― he was surprised to see he had so many― had come to see him off. Not everyone was there, though. Hinata's team was away on another mission and Gai's team was off trying to stop― and in Lee's case, cheer on― their sensei, who was currently running 500 laps around Konoha, backwards, on his elbows after losing another competition with Kakashi who, as usual, was late, but had walked in just in time.

"Alright," said Tsunade, "According to the letter I got asking for you to come, you'll be traveling by this… thing. It's called a… 'porutoki'… I think."

"You mean 'portkey'?" Naruto corrected, with a perfect English accent. Everyone looked at him― he wasn't kidding when he said he wasn't an idiot. Tsunade scowled a tiny bit at the correction as she handed Usagi the crusty old boot that was to serve as their transport.

"Anyway… you'll arrive in wizarding London. From there, teleport to this address." She handed Naruto a small slip of paper, with scrawled writing― in English― written on one side of it. "Once you get there, and have memorized what's on it, hand it to the boy you'll be protecting. You'll soon find out why."

Naruto nodded and touched a piece of the portkey― he'd read about how they worked― and then he turned to look at all his friends and former teachers that stood behind him. Seeing the look on Sakura's face, he felt he had to speak up.

"Don't worry, Sakura. I'll be back in less than a year, before you even―"

He felt a sharp tug from somewhere behind his navel, so he quickly gave one last wave before he and the female ANBU were whisked off to an unfamiliar world.

* * *

There! Three chapters down!

I know, it's kind of a weird place to end it, but I'm really tired and I just wanted to finish it so I could back to the Harry Potter story sooner. The two of them will meet next chapter, I swear!

(1) It is presently the last week of June, and Voldemort has just been revived, so that's why Harry is in need of protection.

(2) Yes, Naruto wears a watch. He does now, anyway.

(3) Itachi means weasel, if you didn't know.

(E1) EDIT: ...okay, so i got a weird semi-flame about calling Naruto's shirt a tank top. The person ranted about men not wearing tank tops. What I mean by this is "beater", and I don't know if they call them that where the flamer was from, but around where i live, it's perfectly acceptable to call that a tank top. it was an odd thing to be flamed about, to say the least.

Please review! Also, as usual, if there are any questions or if you see any big mistakes, tell me in a review.

See ya!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	4. Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Thank you all so much! I'm very happy with the response I've been getting on this story!

"Speaking"

_Thinking_(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

* * *

**Last Time:**

On Naruto's side: _He felt a sharp tug from somewhere behind his navel, so he quickly gave one last wave before he and the female ANBU were whisked off to an unfamiliar world._

On Harry's side: _Two figures, both of whom were no taller than Harry, stepped out from the shadows to greet them._

* * *

**Chapter 4:** Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place

There was no doubt in Naruto's mind; he was never going to travel by portkey again, as long as he could help it.

The two of them were just getting over the nausea of travelling by such methods, when they teleported away from where they'd landed― a decrepit old bar called the Leaky Cauldron― to arrive at the place written on the small slip of paper Naruto was clutching in his hand. It was nighttime in London, as opposed to early morning when they'd left Konoha. The time difference was almost dizzying to the two shinobi. They stepped forward to meet the boy who they would be guarding. He was a little taller than Naruto, and about the same height as Usagi-san. (1)

Harry couldn't really see what they looked like, since there wasn't any light in the area, but he could tell that the taller one, who was obviously female, was wearing white mask. He didn't trust people who wore masks; they reminded him of the Death Eaters. The boy with shocking blonde hair― which could be seen even in the limited light― held out his hand and gave Harry a small piece of paper.

"Read it in your head and memorize it," growled Moody, suddenly by Harry's shoulder.

_The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix is located at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, London. Let's see… ten, eleven… thirteen… Okay, no twelve. God, why do wizards have to be so difficult…?_

"I trust you two have already done the same," he then said, addressing the two newcomers, who nodded (though Naruto had to translate for Usagi-san, both what Moody said, and what the paper said). "Okay, now think of exactly what you just read."

As the three of them did so, a house suddenly appeared out of nowhere and seemed to inflate, pushing numbers eleven and thirteen to the side― though apparently not disturbing any of the Muggles inside. Once they were inside the old dark house, Moody returned the light to the street and then closed and locked the door behind him.

They found themselves in a dark, narrow hallway. Loud thumping sounds could be heard from up the stairs, and Harry was suddenly latched onto by a girl with frizzy brown hair. A boy with red hair stood behind her, smiling at the arrival of his friend.

"Hermione, Ron, it's good to see you!" Harry said, also with a small smile. There was something in his tone that his friends obviously hadn't heard, but Naruto, being a trained shinobi, heard it as clear as day…

Harry potter was not very happy to see them.

* * *

Naruto pouted and crossed his arms sulkily; but it was all part of the act. While undercover playing the part of a translator and transfer student, Naruto had unwittingly fallen back into his old routine of acting like an idiot.

It was a week after they had first arrived. The members of the Order of the Phoenix had declared that for the night's, meeting, Usagi― and in turn, Naruto― wasn't needed. All of the kids, who weren't allowed in the meeting also, stood at the top of the first flight of stairs, going through their usual efforts to hear what was going on in the meeting. Naruto pretended to be annoyed that he wasn't able to be down there.

Of course, after the first meeting in which Naruto and Usagi had been present, they had been intensely questioned about what they had heard. Naruto just fed them some fake information about how boring the meetings were. In truth, they were anything but.

The extendable ears were unraveled to their full length. Naruto wasn't even trying to join the others; he knew that even if they could get the extendable ears to reach to the kitchen door, the spell Mrs. Weasley had put on the door would stop any attempts at eavesdropping. Naruto leaned moodily on the railing of the staircase and put on an annoyed face, and Usagi stood a few feet away, silently observing her charge and his friends. More importantly, however, she was observing _her_ friend, Naruto. She didn't think he'd be back to behaving this way so quickly.

She stepped forward to him, and though this was done without a sound, she drew the attention of the teen wizards. She continued forward until her mask was nearly touching Naruto's face.

"_You__r__e__ doing it again_," she said in a flat, but stern tone.

"_What are you talking about?"_

"_You know… this isn't the real you, this is the act that you put on. I thought you'd stopped doing that!"_

"_I'm undercover; I have to act this way." _He was sure to keep his tone sounding whiny, so the others wouldn't suspect anything.

"_No, you don't. If you get stuck acting like this, again, who knows what you'll―"_

_"How do you even know about these things…?" _he growled, suddenly angry and no longer caring as much about his tone, "_Tsunade couldn't have told you everything!"_

Her mask stared at him silently. The others looked on in interest and confusion.

"_Why does it concern you the way I act? It's my problem, so I'll―_" He was cut off mid-sentence by a harsh slap to his face, her now ungloved hand hovering beside his head.

"Baka" She stepped back a few feet and transported away with a puff of smoke. Naruto held a hand up to the cheek where she had hit him and glanced over at the group of young witches and wizards. Their mouths were hanging open.

"Oi, mate…" Ron said slowly, "What did you say to her?"

"Um… nothing, really," Naruto replied, still shocked.

"Well you must have said something," insisted Hermione. Naruto didn't really have a response, but luckily, he heard something from the floor below.

"Uh, you might want to get your ears back… the meeting is about end." Using the momentary distraction that this caused, he slipped away up the next flight of stairs and into his room on the next floor. Closing the door behind him, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He was sharing the large room with Ron and Harry. At first, this had been awkward, but Naruto had a way of blending in that made it so the other two boys were at ease with him there. Well… somewhat.

There had been the outburst of Harry's that Naruto had walked in on just as it was about to happen. Something was making Harry very angry… And there was the matter of him waking up in the middle of the night and generally not sleeping well. Naruto was trained to wake up at the slightest noise― living in this house that noise was often the troubled young wizard in the middle of his latest nightmare.

Naruto looked around the room. It was messy; but what did you expect from three guys living in the same room? He glanced over at his pile of books and clothes; buried beneath everything was his weapons pouch. Sharp and shining kunai lay under all of that. Sure, it wasn't a razor... but it was merely a question of using one of those to―

No, he wouldn't be that weak. Naruto shook his head, trying to get the thought out of his mind.

**You really want to don't you?**

_No! I'm not going to―_

**Whatever… just know that **_**when**** you do, I'm not going to heal you.**_

The mattress sunk down as Naruto sat down on it, not taking his eyes off the pile at the foot of his bed.

_Why did you say __**when**__, like it's so permanent that I'm going to do it again?_

There was a short second of absolute silence.

_Maybe just small cut…_

The Kyuubi snorted― in the most dignified way possible, of course― and laughed a little bit. **What did I tell you? You're on your own now with this, kid. Just don't cut too deep this time.**

Naruto frowned at the Kyuubi's change in attitude… normally, he would try to convince Naruto that things weren't as bad as he thought they were and that cutting wasn't the answer. Today, however, he seemed to not care much at all. Perhaps Naruto had taken things so far, that even the Kyuubi couldn't help?

Naruto reached into his pile and felt around until he found the weapons pouch. Just as he was about to draw it out, the door opened and Harry walked in. The two boys stared at each other, neither moving for a few seconds.

"Uh… are you okay?" Harry asked, wondering what Naruto was doing.

"Oh, I'm fine…" Naruto drew out a crumpled towel and a bundle of clothes from his pile. "I was just about to take a shower, actually." With that, he skittered out of the room as fast as Harry thought could be humanly possible.

Harry lay down on his own bed and stared blankly at the ceiling. The feeling of empty mindedness that it gave him was perfect― he didn't have to think about any of the horrible things that had been happening to him. He didn't have to think about that night in the graveyard…

_There I go, thinking about it again. Why…? _He heard the sound of someone laughing. _That damn picture frame again…_ he glared at the empty background of the canvas on the wall, willing it to either shut up once and for all, or at least show who was supposed to be in that picture in the first place…

Ron entered the room and sat on his bed, making much more noise than necessary.

"Bloody hell, Harry!" he exclaimed, "You're lucky you missed it! My mum cam up the stairs and started yelling at us for eavesdropping! It's a good thing we got the extendable ears up in time, or we would have been in even more trouble. Naruto warned us just in time!"

Harry grunted a response. Ron was really loud right now, and disturbing his thoughts.

"Speaking of which," he continued, lowering his voice slightly, "Did you see that slap she hit him with?"

"Yes, Ron, I was there."

"Well I tell you, I'm making sure to stay on her good side from now on! There's something weird with the two of them, don't you think?"

Harry sat up; he _had_ been thinking the exact same thing.

"Yeah, I do. What do you think―"

His sentence was cut off by a loud sound coming from the bathroom where Naruto was. The two boys looked at each other, and then bolted out into the hallway.

* * *

Usagi leaned against the wall just next to the room that the three boys were staying in. She was originally on her way to talk to Naruto and apologize to him, but she realized he was in the shower when she heard the water running in the bathroom down the hall. Ron and Harry were now in the middle of a conversation. Well, Ron was, a least.

She didn't understand a word that they were saying, but she didn't need to. It was the _way_ that they said things that gave everything away, and she knew exactly who and what they were talking about.

_Naruto…_ she thought, _they see it, too. Why must you wear this mask?_

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud crashing sound coming from down the hall, where Naruto was. She took off towards him without another thought.

* * *

Fred and George sat in their room one floor above, bouncing ideas off of each other for new candies that they could invent, and reflecting on what had just happened. Suddenly, George had an idea worthy of the title 'genius'.

"I've got a great idea!" he said out of nowhere, "I've been inspired by our foreign guests."

"Is it a candy that makes you feel like you've been slapped in the face? Somehow, I don't think people would buy that…"

"No, it's better!"

"Oh, do tell."

"A candy that temporarily makes you able to speak and understand a language for a short period of time."

"And would this involve not being able to understand your own language?"

"Of course!"

"Brilliant!"

The twins set to work on their new idea. They were suddenly interrupted by a loud crashing sound coming from the floor below them. They abandoned their work and apparated to the hallway below.

* * *

Hermione and Ginny sat in their room, contemplating what had just happened. Both were very suspicious of their two Japanese guests.

"Why exactly _does_ Usagi-san wear that mask?" asked Ginny, wondering aloud.

"I asked Naruto that same question… he said it was part of her duty, and that he doesn't even know who she is," Hermione replied.

"Can we really trust her? Her mask reminds me of a Death Eater…" They collectively shuddered. Hermione closed the book she had been reading.

"I'm more worried about Naruto," she said, lowering her voice. "I mean, Usagi-san was hired by Dumbledore to protect Harry, right? So she must be trustworthy... Well, Naruto is only here because he can speak English."

"Yeah… but he seems nice enough. He's really cheerful most of the time."

"And when he's not? You saw how he was when speaking with her. He was all happy at first, then he suddenly got really mad at something. It was almost like he was…_growling _at her."

"Before she slapped him, you mean?"

"Yes… I wonder what he said to her..."

They heard the sound of the shower in the bathroom across the hall starting and the water running loudly.

"Oh," said Ginny absently, "I wonder who that is…"

"It doesn't matter." Hermione got out a new book. "Right now, we've got to focus on this. I've decided to research all I can about where the two of them come from, as well as what Usagi's mask could mean. I think maybe―"

Hermione's speech was cut off by a loud crash that came from the bathroom across the hall. The two girls glanced at each other, before Hermione closed her book and they ran into the hall.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto… no, he reminded himself, that wasn't the way they said names here.

Naruto Uzumaki. It sounded weird, like it wasn't him, even though it was only flipped around. Then again, this wasn't him… he'd fallen into his old routine of putting on a mask to be someone that he wasn't.

And another old habit seemed to want to make its way to the surface as well.

Little did Hermione and Ginny know, Naruto had been standing outside their door and had heard almost all of their conversation. He didn't really care what they thought, though, as long as they didn't find anything out. When he entered the bathroom, he dropped the bundle he'd been carrying onto the floor and turned the water on, but didn't get in.

He presently stood glaring into the reflection of his own eyes in the mirror, the endless pools of blue threatening to swallow him up. Behind him, the weapons pouch lay innocently on the tile floor. He could hear the Kyuubi laughing quietly at him as he willed himself, _don't be weak… don't be weak… you don't need to cut._ There was another voice in his mind, though, other than the Kyuubi's. While this one never actually said anything, it was more of a feeling; a presence.

It was the side of Naruto that tried to convince him he needed to bleed.

He continued his staring, but his breathing began to get slightly ragged, as he gripped the sides of the sink in front of him to steady himself. The Kyuubi had stopped his laughter, and was now trying to battle the part of Naruto that wanted him to cut. But the demon's voice went unheard.

As his hear raced and the blood pounded in his ears, Naruto's grip tightened on the sides of the sink, so hard it seemed like the porcelain would break soon. He suddenly couldn't stand the sight of his own reflection; he had to do something about it.

Within seconds, his fist was in the center of the broken fragments of glass. Red liquid began to drip down his hand and the surface of what was once the mirror. He collapsed onto the floor in pain, holding his arm; it had hurt so much more than he had expected it to.

Yet the pain felt so good… could this be considered cutting? He hadn't exactly meant it to come out that way…

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard a commotion going on outside the door, but it didn't really register in his brain. The sweet ecstasy of the blood flowing from his hand was taking away all other feeling. He lay there, numb.

* * *

What happens when seven people all start to run to the same place at one time?

Chaos, that's what.

Usagi-san was by far the fastest and was almost to the bathroom door when Hermione and Ginny rushed out and nearly collided with her. Ron and Harry came right behind her and were about to crash into Hermione and Ginny, when Fred and George apparated just in between the two groups, and all six of them ended up in a pile on the hallway floor. Usagi walked away unscathed. They picked themselves up from the floor.

They all glanced around at each other; if they were all out here then that only left…

"Naruto!" said Harry, knocking on the door, "Are you okay? We heard a crash."

There wasn't any answer.

"Did something break, or fall?" Hermione asked.

Still no answer.

"_Uzumaki-san… are you okay?_"

A weak response came from inside; "_Yes... I-I'm okay... I'm fine..._"

The ANBU kunoichi motioned for the rest of them to stay away, as she bent down to the doorknob and pressed her palm to the lock. She forced a little chakra into it and then pushed the door open, ducked inside, and closed the door quickly behind her, locking the rest of them out.

She was shocked by what she saw. Naruto now was sitting up slightly, his head leaning against the side of the tub. She ran to him and helped him sit up; there was a listlessness in his eyes that made her shiver.

"_Naruto…_" she whispered softly, holding him to herself gently. He shook a little, but just sat there for a long time. After a very long time, Naruto spoke.

"_I'm… sorry,__ Usagi-san…" _he whispered softly.

"_It's__ okay, Naruto… I'm here."_

* * *

Aww! A little tender moment between the two… Yet Naruto still doesn't know who she is…

Ooh, it was angsty… Poor Naruto, he's having a relapse… If anyone's wondering why he went back to hurting himself so quickly, look at it this way: all habits are hard to overcome in one shot. As for why Kyuubi isn't as nice as before… who said he was going to be nice all the time? He's a demon!

(1) Naruto is slouching again. He does this.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	5. Diagon Alley and the Boggart

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Just a note, I'll be glazing over a lot of the details, like Harry's trial. This is written with the assumption that you've read the OotP and know what happens already.

"Speaking"

_Thinking _(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)!

* * *

**Last Time:**

_"Naruto…" she whispered softly, holding him to herself gently. He shook a little, but just sat there for a long time. After a very long time, Naruto spoke._

_"I'm… sorry, Usagi-san…" he whispered softly._

_"It__s__ okay, Naruto… I'm here."_

* * *

**Chapter**** 5:** Diagon Alley and the Boggart

Harry couldn't believe it. He'd been cleared of all charges! Dumbledore had come at just the right moment and saved him from expulsion. He was annoyed, though, that Dumbledore seemed to have been refusing to look him in the eye, and Harry didn't know why. It unsettled him.

Harry returned to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place with the good news that he was not expelled from Hogwarts and would be returning that year. In a few days, once everyone was able to breathe that sigh of relief, it was time to go shopping for their school supplies. The group of students, plus Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Usagi, prepared to travel to Diagon Alley. They quickly realized, however, that Usagi's pronunciation of their destination was far form accurate. Who knows where the Floo Network would have landed her?

Naruto had read about the Floo Network when learning about the wizarding world. He quickly realized what might happen and stopped everyone from leaving. When he asked Usagi to say "Diagon Alley" the others saw the problem as well.

"We can take her," George offered.

"Yeah, we'll be really careful," Fred added.

Molly looked at them apprehensively. They'd never done a side-along disapparation before… and even if they had, allowing them to do it again would probably be a mistake; they looked at their mother, begging, and she might have allowed them to try it. Her common sense screamed otherwise.

"No… I think your father should take her." Arthur nodded his approval and stepped forward.

"I should go with Mr. Weasley, too," Naruto said, "So I can explain things to her when we get there."

Once the plan was set, Mr. Weasley, Naruto, and Usagi waited for the rest of the group to leave via the fireplace. Naruto explained what they were going to do to Usagi, and then the three of them disapparated from Grimmauld Place. They arrived at a hidden corner of Diagon Alley. Mr. Weasley looked a little tired after apparating with two additional people, but he was fine and left to find his family, instructing Naruto and Usagi to meet them at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor when Naruto had finished with Usagi, before the group did their shopping.

When Mr. Weasley left, they formulated a plan of their own, in order to better protect Harry. Naruto would stay near to him while shopping and Usagi would protect him from afar. She disappeared in a puff of smoke, and Naruto rounded the corner and went down the road a little, coming to the ice cream shop and immediately spotting the group sitting outside at one of the table in front of it. As he approached, them, they looked at him with confusion.

"Where's Usagi?" Ron asked, revealing to Naruto why the group was confused.

"Oh, she's around," he answered cheerfully. Many of them exchanged looks.

"Shouldn't she be closer?" Hermione asked, then added almost in a whisper, "You know… to protect Harry?"

"She is ANBU," Naruto replied cryptically, still smiling broadly, "She's part of the shadows."

Needless to say, this didn't clear up the confusion.

The group split up into several smaller groups. Fred and George went off on their own, Ginny and her parents went to Flourish and Blotts to get her books for the year, and Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Naruto went as their own group.

Naruto's mask insisted that they visit every one of the fascinating stores located in Diagon Alley, claiming to want to see everything. The true, practical side of him actually had a reason for this. In his mind, Naruto was mapping out Diagon Alley as they went, surveying heights of buildings, possible hiding places, areas were people could possibly attack from, and, of course, which stores had the best deals. Acting like an idiot wasn't entirely useless at times.

Usagi had performed a henge to make herself look like a middle aged witch, so she could blend into the crowd. She saw Naruto's acts of stupidity and sighed inwardly. She knew he had to have a reason for it, but she hated how much it hurt him to have to wear that personality mask. It wasn't like an ANBU mask, which was an honor to wear; not in the slightest.

Harry smiled a little at Naruto's excitement at being in Diagon Alley. It reminded him of the first time he'd been to wizarding London and how overwhelming and exciting it had been for him. Just as quickly as the smile had appeared, it was gone again; thinking of when he had first learned he was a wizard reminded him of what things had become. Things were simpler back then.

No one seemed to notice Harry's brief smile, and slight frown that replaced it, but Naruto spotted it right away. He didn't say anything, though, and continued his act of being oblivious for the sake of keeping his cover.

They entered the first store that they would actually be buying something in. Naruto had a wand, but it was barely responsive to any spells he tried, though he could get things to work if he tried. It was obvious that it just wasn't the right wand for him. Naruto and the trio of wizards walked into Ollivander's shop, standing among the dusty shelves until the old man came out to meet them.

"Ah," he said, "You've returned. Haven't broken your wands, I hope… Mr. Weasley!" Ron jumped with Ollivander's sudden out burst. "Willow, 14 inches, unicorn tail hair. Still works well, I presume?" Ron nodded stiffly, and Ollivander continued, "Miss Granger… Vine wood, 9 inches, dragon heartstring. Yes, a very nice wand…"

He turned his eyes to Harry; the young wizard knew what was coming before he ever said it. He felt an involuntary shudder run through him.

"And, of course, Mr. Potter… Holly, 11 inches, feather from the tail of a phoenix… Quite a powerful wand. And as you know, it is the brother wand of―"

"Mr. Ollivander," Naruto interrupted him, inclining his head a little in a small bow, "Forgive me for interrupting, but I am the reason we're here." The three friends were surprised by how calm Naruto was― a drastic change from the Naruto of just two minutes earlier.

"Yes, I noticed you were new here… I remember every wand I've ever sold, and I certainly don't remember you…" Naruto was feeling uneasy about this man; it seemed as though he was peering into Naruto's soul. That's where the Kyuubi was. "You seem a little old to be starting Hogwarts."

"I'm new to Hogwarts this year. I'm a transfer student," he explained. "I have a wand, but it doesn't seem to be right for me." Naruto reached into his pocket and drew out the wand he had been using. Ollivander took it from him and began to examine it thoroughly.

"This is quite a fine wand…" he stated after a long time, "But in no way is it right for you. Hold out your wand arm." Naruto held out his right arm. He was skilled with either, but just held out the arm that he ususally wrote with. Ollivander placed the wand down on a table and walked through the shelves towards the back of the shop. I tiny floating tape measure appeared near Naruto and began measuring him in what seemed to be a random pattern. As it measured each of his whisker marks, he had to resist the urge to grab the thing and crush it in his fist.

Ollivander returned with a stack of boxes that was probably taller than Naruto was when he was 12 years old. Though that wasn't _really_ saying much. Naruto tried them out one after another, sometimes getting a spark to come out or a rush of wind to pass through the shop, and sometimes even having the wand taken away before he even had chance to try it. Ollivander seemed to be having the time of his life. Finally, the stack was entirely depleted. This only seemed to make Ollivander happier. He looked at Naruto with a strange brightness in his eyes, and declared he knew the perfect wand for him. As he went to get it, Naruto briefly wondered why he didn't just get that wand in the first place.

Ollivander returned again, now carrying only one wand box. He took the wand from its box and handed it to Naruto. As soon as it hit his fingertips, Naruto felt as though a surge of chakra had been pushed into him. He waved the wand slightly and a soft breeze blew through the room and seemed to swirl around his body before dissipating. Naruto closed his eyes for a moment and let his senses take it in; the breeze smelled just like the woods surrounding Konoha.

"Rowan, 10 ½ inches…" Ollivander said quietly, a smile evident in his eyes, "Particularly rare and powerful."

"What's in the core?" Naruto asked cautiously, examining the wand. It was of a medium length and very light, both in weight and color. His hand seemed to tingle as he held it.

"Nine hairs from the tail of a fox. Very rare indeed…"

Naruto froze, ceasing his inspection of the wand. Kyuubi laughed a little in the back of his mind.

"A demon fox?" he asked, barely audible.

"No…" something gleamed behind Ollivander's eyes, "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," Naruto recovered quickly and took out his weapons pouch, which he had disguised as a pouch to hold money. "How much for the wand?"

"Well that one is quite expensive… but I can give a discount if you trade in your old wand. I'd say it comes to… 10 galleons."

Naruto stopped with his hand still inside the pouch. He learned how to use the wizard currency and had been given some as part of mission expenses; but if he paid that much, he wouldn't have enough to buy much of anything else. Ron's jaw was hanging open. The last time he had spent that much at one time was… never. Even Hermione looked surprised by the cost. Harry looked away.

"Umm… maybe another wand would be better, then," he mumbled, "I'll just put his one―"

"I'll pay for it," Harry said quietly, bringing out his own money. At the look he was given, he added, "Don't worry, I have enough."

As they left the shop, Naruto with his new wand in his pocket, the shinobi couldn't help but feel something in the pit of his stomach. He hated when he was younger that he had to live off of charity from the Sandaime. It was the same at Ichiraku's ramen shop, the only place that would serve him food that wasn't poisoned in any way. He refused to look Harry in the eye after that. Usagi had immediately noticed this when she saw the four of them exit the shop, looking much less happy than when they had entered. Harry and Naruto both looked slightly embarrassed, Hermione looked very serious, and Ron looked baffled over something― not that that was a big change from normal.

Getting a wand had taken much longer than expected, but Naruto already had his books and required materials, so all that was left was for him to get the school robes. One they had gotten them, they met up with the rest of the Weasley family and later returned to Grimmauld Place.

* * *

One week later, there was a party held to celebrate Ron and Hermione becoming the prefects of their year. Mrs. Weasley couldn't have been happier, though Fred and George of course subjected their younger brother to endless torment about it. Several members of the Order were present at the party, including Tonks, Lupin, Moody, and Shacklebolt. Naruto once again saw that Harry was acting happy, but was actually feeling something very different. This time, however, he could sense the jealousy coming from Harry. His friends had been made prefects, but he hadn't.

Naruto was watching Harry chat with Moody out of the corner of his eye as he stood by Usagi, answering questions directed at the two of them. He had the feeling that some of the Order members didn't trust them.

"Yes," Naruto said, answering a single question for what seemed liked the hundredth time, "I'm here both as a translator for Usagi-san and as a transfer student to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Who taught you to speak English?" This question had also been asked a number of times.

"A former teacher of mine," he replied yet again. Naruto glanced at Harry and Moody again. Moody appeared to be showing him a picture, but his magical eye was glued to Naruto. "Uh… can you excuse me for a second," Naruto said as politely as possible, turning to leave without hearing an answer. He approached Harry and the auror, a cheerful smile on his face.

"Hey," said Naruto, about to make up an excuse for why he interrupted them. Before he even had a chance to say anything else, a loud rattling sound coming from the floor above stopped him. Moody's magical eye swiveled towards it.

The thorough cleaning they'd been giving to Number 12 Grimmauld Place was nearly completed― not that it had made any _real_ difference in the state of the house, but at least a dent had been made. One of the few things they hadn't able to get out was the boggart that was living in a cupboard upstairs. It made a racket sometimes as it rattled in the cupboard.

"Oh… that thing again," Mrs. Weasley sighed, her annoyance evident in her voice. "I guess I'll have to get it…" She left, walking upstairs and the small party continued.

It was halted again by a scream and the sound of Mrs. Weasley's sobbing. Naruto and Usagi shared a look, before racing upstairs; the majority of the people at the party followed closely behind them. Naruto and Usagi ran into the room upstairs to find an awful sight. They froze for a second; Harry came up behind them and also froze at the sight. Mrs. Weasley was sobbing in front of the cold, dead corpse of Ron. Harry felt like the air had disappeared from around him. But… Ron was downstairs, so…

"_R-r-riddikulus!_" Mrs. Weasley choked out, pointing her shaky wand at Ron's body. There was a loud _crack_. Bill's dead body now lay motionless on the floor, his eyes wide open and empty. Mrs. Weasley sobbed harder than ever. "_R-r-riddikulus!_"

_Crack_. Dead Mr. Weasley.

"No…" she moaned, "_Riddikulus! Riddikulus! __RI__D__DI__K__ULUS!"_

_Crack._ Dead twins._ Crack. _Dead Percy._ Crack._ Dead Harry…

It was at that moment that two things happened nearly at once; first, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Sirius, Moody, and Lupin arrived to the room, hearing how frantic Mrs. Weasley was becoming. The second was that Usagi and Naruto rushed forward to confront the boggart. As its form began to shift, Naruto quickly explained to her that it turned into a person's worst fear, and the only way to get rid of it was to turn it into something funny.

It all happened so fast, no one was able to tell who was closer to the boggart, and they couldn't tell whose fear it was changing into. All they knew was that it was not only frightening, but incredibly confusing.

Naruto now stood before them. But it wasn't Naruto exactly… His head was bowed, a shadow obscuring his eyes and most of his face. He was wearing the outfit that Naruto had gotten while he was training with Jiraiya and wore until just recently; the sleeves were rolled to the elbows. "He" held his arms forward, revealing his wrists to them.

_Drip_.

Deep crimson liquid began spilling from both of his wrists, flowing from unseen wounds. It pooled into his palms and dripped down through his fingers, falling to the floor and staining the rug.

Usagi collapsed to her knees with a small gasp, but Naruto didn't notice. His mind had gone numb. But the vision wasn't over.

The "Naruto" in front of them looked up suddenly, his gaze piercing into the real Naruto with red eyes and slit pupils. The whisker marks on his cheeks were thick and dark, making him look menacing. But it was his mouth that completed to look. It was twisted into a horrible grin, his fangs elongated and his lips set in a sneering snarl. He looked feverish and crazy with malice, as though he would lash out at any moment and tear out all of their necks. Naruto was shaking by now, but was the first to break from his stupor. He drew his wand from his pocket, where he now kept it, and pointed it firmly at the horrible image before him.

"_Riddikulus,_" he said. He had said it very quietly, but the spell was effective. The boggart transformed into a younger form of Naruto. With a painful constricting in his chest, he knew the exact day this Naruto was from. The sleeves of his orange suit were tied around his waist and green goggles rested on his head. He held his arms behind his head in a relaxed manner and had a smile on his face. One of the last times he ever had a smile that was that close to being real.

"Hilarious…" he mumbled without any humor, waving his wand again. The boggart disappeared in a puff of smoke and Naruto pushed past everyone out of the room, his eyes downcast. The others moved forward to comfort the crying Mrs. Weasley. Usagi still kneeled in the middle of the floor, silent. She made a handseal and disappeared in a puff of smoke much like the boggart had.

Once they were both gone, those still in the room exchanged meaningful glances with each other. The adults in the room left, comforting Molly and helping her downstairs. Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were left in the room alone.

"What exactly was that?" Ginny asked, her eyes glued to the spot where the boggart had been. The blood that had been staining the floor was now gone.

"I don't know," said Harry, "I mean, it was obviously Naruto, but… why did he look like that?"

"Yeah," Ron said, "He looked possessed… and his wrists…" He shuddered.

"My wrists are tingling just thinking about it…" Ginny whispered, rubbing her own wrists nervously.

"You guys are missing something," Hermione said suddenly.

"What do you mean?"

"There's one thing that should jump out first about this whole thing…" She looked at them intensely. "The boggart was the same distance from either of them."

They looked back in confusion.

"So?"

"So whose fear was that, exactly?"

* * *

S_tupid.__ Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

Naruto lay on his bed, facing the ceiling with his eyes squeezed shut tightly. He'd made so many mistakes since coming, many that he didn't realize until he was reflecting on it just after the incident with the boggart.

The first had been an obvious one― he hadn't been strong enough to stop his dangerous cutting habit, and he could tell it had aroused suspicion from the young witches and wizards. The second mistake had come, he reasoned, as a result of the overwhelming experience of being in Diagon Alley. He had let it slip that Usagi was an ANBU. Just that one word could jeopardize so much about this mission. His third mistake had been later that same day, when he and Harry, Ron, and Hermione were in the wand shop. He'd mentioned the demon fox.

His biggest mistake had come with the boggart just moments earlier. He was being honest with himself; he didn't know that would be his worst fear. But it _did_ make sense… what other things was he scared of? But in his rush to protect people, he'd done magic. And that was where the problem lie. No one was supposed to know the extent of his magical knowledge. After all, he _was_ playing the part of an idiot whose only talent was that he was bilingual. But getting rid of a boggart shouldn't be a big deal for someone going into the fifth year of Hogwarts. More importantly, he had done magic outside of school.

Because he was not actually from the wizarding world, he didn't have the Trace on him, meaning he could do magic outside of school even though he was underage. That could possibly be the biggest giveaway that he was undercover. He vowed to try even harder to hide who he really was and hoped no one in the group of wizards had noticed any of the mistakes he'd made so far.

Unfortunately, that group had Hermione in it.

Hermione, of course, had noticed these things right away. But no matter how many times she looked through her books, she couldn't find anything. There was nothing about "ANBU", demon foxes, or reasons why Naruto wouldn't have the Trace put on him. Hermione made a vow of her own to find out everything she could about their "guests".

* * *

Naruto stayed silent as the three boys sharing the room did their final packing for school. Harry and Ron weren't about to ask him if that had been his fear, and if he knew exactly what was going on in it. Well, Ron would have, but Harry gave him a look that convinced him otherwise.

That night, as Ron dreamt peacefully about Quidditch, or some other nonsensical thing, the two other boys slept hardly at all. Harry fell asleep quickly, but was woken up by a nightmare about Cedric's death and a horrible pain in his scar, as he often was. Naruto lay awake, beating himself up over all the things that had gone wrong.

**Get some rest, kid. You'll be ****needing**** it.**

_Leave me alone._

**So you can stew in your misery?**

_…no…_

**Yes. All your thinking is keeping me awake.**

_Then ignore me. I never said you had to listen to everything I think._

**Well unfortunately for both of us, I hear everything you think whether I want to or not.**** Now why are you looking ****a**** everything like it's your fault?**

_Because it is. I'm getting careless and I don'__t know why… maybe it was better when―_

**When everyone thought you were an idiot?**

Naruto didn't specifically answer him. But the Kyuubi could still hear what he was thinking anyway. For some reason, Naruto wished he could go back to being that carefree ninja he was when he first graduated from the Academy. It was easier when not much was expected of him. But now, he was on a mission worthy of an ANBU. And he was failing it.

Just as he had failed to bring Sasuke home several times.

xxxxxxxxxxxIn a muggle bar, 10 miles awayxxxxxxxxxxx

A boy who looked about 15 or 16 years old stepped into the old pub, wearing a dark blue hoodie that was pulled over his even darker hair. The bartender looked up briefly, and then ignored the newcomer. The boy stepped forward and swept his black eyes around the room, immediately spotting the person he was looking for sitting at a table in the far back corner. He went to the blond man seated there and sat down without a word.

"You've come alone?" the man asked in a low tone, his grey eyes looking at the boy suspiciously.

"What does it matter?" the boy shot back. He had a slight accent, revealing that he was from a faraway land.

"There are many people who would gladly get rid of me, given the chance."

"Believe me," the boy said, leaning forward. "If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already. Now do we have a deal or not?"

There was a slight pause, in which the man seemed to be thinking things over. "I'll take you to him," the man replied at last. "Anything to get away from these filthy muggles."

The boy leaned back and smiled, a flash of red appearing in his eyes for just a fraction of a second.

Power was even closer to his grasp.

* * *

Cliffy! …Sort of!

Next chapter, they'll be going to Hogwarts, and Naruto will be sorted into his house… shouldn't be that hard to guess which one.

Well, until next time!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	6. Of Trains and Plans

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Oddly enough, no notes.

"Speaking"

_Thinking _(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

* * *

**Last Time:**

_Naruto tackled the __boggart__, and the wizards are suspicious... and Sasuke made a brief appearance in a bar in London!_

* * *

**Chapter 6:** Of Trains and Plans

The bright red Hogwarts Express was enveloped in steam as it lay waiting on the tracks of King's Cross Station, at platform 9 ¾. Naruto looked at the impressive sight in wonderment, a look of sheer amazement on his face―actually, he'd seen stranger things, but he was acting, and yet again mapping out the area. The adults who had escorted them to King's Cross Station didn't seem to notice anything, but, again, the teen witches and wizards did. How did he go back to being so cheery that quickly?

They chose not to ask him, though, and passed through the barrier to the platform where the train stood. The Order members who had been escorting Harry and the other teens staying at Grimmauld Place stayed back on the platform as the students boarded the train with their belongings. Once aboard, Harry found he, Naruto, Ginny, and Usagi a compartment for them to sit; unfortunately, there were two people already in the compartment; Neville and a blond girl that Harry didn't know. Ron and Hermione looked at Harry apologetically, then left to go to the prefects' compartment. Naruto once again sensed anger and jealousy coming from Harry, but the young wizard was hiding as best as he could. The four newcomers entered and sat down in the now full seats.

"Hey, Loony―er, Luna…" Ginny said kindly to the blond girl. Luna looked up from the magazine, _The Quibbler_, which she was reading upside down and greeted Ginny back, looking very serene as she did so. Ginny took a seat beside Neville, who was holding a strange-looking plant.

Naruto looked over at Usagi, who was sitting silently on the seat across from him. She had preformed a henge that allowed her to blend in as a student for the moment. She looked back at Naruto blankly through her now brown eyes. Her transformed hair was light brown and long and flowed loosely over her shoulders; she was the exact copy of a muggle girl they'd seen on their way to the station. The six of them sat in silence for a while.

"_Ne, Usagi__-san," _said Naruto, breaking the silence and making the other occupants― minus Luna― jump slightly, "_Are you going to keep that henge up?"_

Neville looked at Naruto confusedly, wonder why he was speaking a foreign language. Luna seemed not to notice.

"_Yes… I'll be staying in disguise __until we reach the school. It's easier this way."_

Naruto nodded and glanced around the compartment, noticing then Neville's confusion.

"Oh, sorry," he said cheerfully, while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, "I guess I should introduce myself. I'm Naruto Uzumaki! And this is Usagi. We're… uh, new this year."

"Oh," said Neville. "Where are you from?"

"Japan," he lied easily. That was their cover. Luna looked up and set her peaceful gaze on him.

"I've read about Japan…" she said in her dreamy voice, "I heard that there's a real problem with tanuki over there. Have you ever seen one?"

"Eh-heh… yeah…." He said exasperatedly, scratching his cheek. The only tanuki that came to mind was Shukaku, Gaara's demon.

"They like to gamble, right? And trick young women?" Luna continued.

_Sounds more like Jiraiya…_ Naruto thought, nodding his head just to end the strange conversation. _Man, if Gaara had Jiraiya's personality…_ He shuddered slightly and involuntarily, but no one seemed to notice.

"And also..." said Luna, "I've heard they have huge-"

"No, no," laughed Naruto nervously, "That's just a myth..." (1) Naruto was nearly convulsing at the thought of what that could imply. Luna went back to reading the magazine upside down.

"_Tanuki…?" _Usagi asked incredulously, wondering how the subject had possibly come up.

"_This girl is a little weird…" _he replied, as if that said it all.

"_I don't have to speak the same language to see that."_

Naruto smiled a little and, for some reason, a small amount of color found its way to Usagi's cheeks.

"_What are you blushing at?" _Naruto asked, laughing.

"_You… have a nice smile…" _she replied, not meeting his gaze.

"_You're really weird for an ANBU…"_

Ginny's ears perked up. She had been ignoring the gibberish-sounding conversation until then, but there was that word again, the one Hermione had pointed out. _ANBU…_He said that, right? Maybe she had imagined it…

"_You're more interesting that way,"_ Naruto continued. He missed her blush when he turned to look at Neville prodding his grey cactus-like plant. He was explaining how it was called a _Mimbulus Mimbletonia_, and that it was rare, and blah, blah, blah… Naruto realized what was about to happen a moment before it did.

He immediately pushed Harry out of the way― he _was _there to protect him, after all. Harry fell to the ground in confusion. A jostle of the train caused Usagi, who happened to have spaced out for just a second, to topple onto the group, lying on top of Harry. The jostle of the train also caused Neville to accidentally puncture one of the many boils his plant had on it. Immediately, everyone in the compartment― save for Harry and Usagi, who were shielded by Naruto― was covered in thick, foul-smelling, Stinksap.

It was at that moment that Cho Chang decided to pay Harry a visit, and was met with a very… _interesting_ sight.

xxxxxxxxxxx20 Miles South, at Malfoy Manorxxxxxxxxxxx

_Lord Uchiha… it has a nice ring to it, doesn't __it… _Sasuke immediately squashed the thought as soon as it wormed its way into his mind. He didn't really know how it had gotten there in the first place, but it didn't belong there anyway.

He was currently being led down a long corridor in the Malfoy Mansion by Lucius Malfoy, the man he had met in the bar in London. As Sasuke walked, showing no signs of emotion, he was silently ridding himself of any thoughts that would give his true intentions away. Everything that he allowed Lord Voldemort to see had to perfectly align with the story he would tell. It wasn't an easy task, especially considering he was also attempting to ignore the haughty Death Eater and had a limited time to clear his head.

Just before he had fought and killed Orochimaru, he had ordered one of his former master's spies to bring him information from Konoha. Among the information gathered, there was a file that told of a mission his former teammate was about to depart on. He could have laughed at the stupidity of some of the people in Konoha; everything he needed to know was in that file.

What immediately caught his attention in the file was not that Naruto would be going on it, but more about the man Naruto would be protecting some kid from. The more he read about the ways of this "Voldemort" the more he saw how incompetent Orochimaru was. It only further strengthened the idea that Sasuke had had about Orochimaru from the start; he never had any intention of being loyal to the former Snake-Lord. Just as he had no intention now of being loyal to the Dark Lord.

That would prove to be harder to hide from the dark wizard than it had been to hide it from the old pedophile. Voldemort was an expert at seeing into a person's mind and soul. Any tiny slip up, and Sasuke would be killed on the spot. Everything had to be perfect.

Luckily, Uchihas are just _born_ perfect…

The blond haired Death Eater pulled open a pair of ornately carved doors, revealing a large room that Sasuke was sure had once been a ballroom, but now looked like the first layer of Hell. Oh joy.

Lord Voldemort sat in an enormous throne that had been placed on a raised section of the room on the far side from the doors. A long crimson carpet ran from the hallway to the throne; Sasuke had to resist the urge to roll his eyes.

He stepped forward until he was in front of the throne and kneeled in a humble bow, as he had been instructed to do. Even his pride would have to be sacrificed if this was going to work. Voldemort stayed silent, scrutinizing the young boy in front of him.

"Lord Voldemort," Sasuke began, sensing the wizard would not start the conversation. A slight shudder ran through the Death Eaters in the room. He masked his accent the best he could, and continued, "I have come to make a deal with you." Sasuke kept his gaze at the crimson carpet; he couldn't look up until the moment was right. _Not yet…_

He was met with a laugh that was high and cold, and reminded him slightly of another snake-man he once knew.

"You, make a deal with me? I don't know who you are but, you obviously don't know who you are dealing with."

_Almost time…_

"I am Sasuke Uchiha," he introduced himself, in the manner that people from this area did, "And let me get one thing straight first; I live to kill one person, and I will not be stopped until I do."

Voldemort looked intrigued at the boy, noting the slight similarity that he shared with him.

_And… now._

Sasuke shifted his gaze up to meet Voldemort's eyes, focusing on one single memory, not matter how painful it was. Voldemort saw Sasuke's memory of _that_ night― the one that marked the beginning of his pain. The Dark Lord removed himself from Sasuke's mind, satisfied for the moment by what he saw. This boy had _so_ much hatred…

"Very well," the evil wizard said dismissively. "What is it that you want to arrange?"

Sasuke stood up to his full height, hiding the smirk that was fighting to make it onto his face.

_I'm in…_

xxxxxxxxxxxBack to the awkwardness on the Hogwarts Expressxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Cho Chang left the safety of the compartment she'd been sharing with her friends, she didn't expect what she saw when she opened the door to the compartment down the train a little. When she asked a random 4th year student which compartment Harry was in, she definitely didn't expect to see him in the position that she did. No, it was pretty safe to say that she didn't expect that in a million years.

Inside the chaotic section of the train, the compartment door slid open to reveal Cho standing with a small smile on her face. She froze, taking in the scene before her.

The compartment was cover in thick, dark green muck that smelled like a mixture of rotten eggs and Draco Malfoy after Quidditch practice. Neville Longbottom was attempting to calm his shaking plant, Ginny Weasley was attempting to remove the Stinksap from her hair, Loony―um, _Luna _Lovegood was reading a magazine obliviously, and a blond boy she didn't know was standing in the center of the compartment, looking as though he had taken most of the Stinksap explosion. But it was what the other two occupants of the compartment were doing that surprised her.

Harry, entirely Stinksap-free, was lying on the floor, under a brown-haired girl that he didn't know. The girl was blushing brightly.

The smile never faded from Cho's face. In fact, not a muscle on her face moved at all as she closed the door again and walked back down the corridor of the train. _I really don't want to know… _she thought, shaking her head a little.

The six of them recovered quickly, casting _scourgify_ spells on themselves and the room until the Stinksap was gone. Naruto and Usagi sat down calmly in the places they had been before. Harry proceeded to knock his head against the wall (2). Cho just _had_ to come see him at that four-second window in which he was in one of the most embarrassing situations of his life. Harry would have liked Cho to find him sitting with a group of very cool people, all laughing at a joke that he had just told; he would not have chosen to be in a compartment covered in Stinksap with Neville and Loony Lovegood, pinned to the ground by a very― _ahem_― well-endowed girl (3).

Soon enough, however, the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmead Station and the students departed from the train. Naruto and the disguised Usagi exchanged a glance; no one had told them where they were to report to upon arriving at the Wizarding School. Soon, however, they were approached by the stern-looking Professor McGonagall, who instructed them to follow her to the school. The two shinobi parted briefly with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Speaking of the three friends; Ron and Hermione had reunited with Harry as the students exited the train. Their trunks in tow, they parted with Naruto and Usagi and made their way towards the horseless carriages that would bring them up to the castle from Hogsmead Station. Ginny, Neville and Luna followed closely behind. As the approached the carriages, Harry suddenly stopped dead in his tracks and stared straight ahead at a point just ahead of the carriage in front of them, his eyes wide. They turned to look at their friend worriedly.

Harry stared at the skeleton-like horse that stood waiting to pull the carriage. Its leathery skin stretched tightly over its bones and large wings sprouted from its back. The dark hollows in its skull turned to look at Harry; black eyes stared into green.

"What… what is that?" asked Harry, unable to break his staring contest with the creature.

"What is what?" asked Ron.

"That… thing." Harry glanced around and saw that there were more of these creatures pulling the Hogwarts carriages. "Those skeleton horses pulling the carriages…"

"There's nothing there, Harry," said Hermione slowly, "The carriages are the same as always."

"Are you feeling alright, Harry?" Ron asked, alarmed.

That tore his gaze away from the winged thing. He looked at his friends, trying to stay calm and not reveal on his face how he was feeling inside. They really couldn't see it? Was he the only one?

"Maybe you're just tired," Hermione suggested, climbing into the carriage, followed closely by Ron, and then Neville and Ginny. Harry hesitated for a second.

"I… yeah…"

"It's okay," said the dreamy voice of Luna as she came up beside him, "You're not going mad or anything. I see them, too."

Harry observed the spacey girl as she climbed into the carriage, her earrings made of radishes and necklace of bottle caps swinging wildly.

"I've seen them since my first year here," she called back, "They've always pulled the carriages. Don't worry. You're just as sane as I am…"

He wasn't sure that he should be comforted by that.

* * *

Naruto and Usagi quickly arrived at the school. Professor McGonagall led them into the Great Hall just as the other professors were entering through another door. They had, of course, been informed of the guard and the "exchange student" that would be serving as her translator. No one but Tsunade, Naruto, and Usagi knew for sure that Naruto was also there as a guard. Even Dumbledore was not told of this, though he could've guessed if he wanted to. They were surprised, however, by the guard's appearance.

They'd been told that the guard was female… but of the two people currently walking behind Professor McGonagall, the girl looked the youngest. Both looked like Hogwarts students; the boy would be going into the 5th year, but the girl looked like she was entering the 3rd.

As the two passed the staff table, they inclined their heads slightly as a sign of respect to the professors. Dumbledore stood behind the table, nodding back to them as s the passed, a twinkle visible in his bright blue eyes. McGonagall led them to a room beside the Great Hall and instructed them to wait until Dumbledore called them. Naruto resisted the urge to roll his eyes. She was treating them like little kids, instead of trained assassins. Once she had left, Usagi dropped the disguise.

The returning students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry filed into the Great Hall and sat at their house tables. As usual, all were in good spirits… but this year, there was a slight somberness that hung over the students that had not been present in previous years― excluding the Slytherins, of course, who were in full spirits. Cedric Diggory had been murdered. Harry Potter was claiming that Voldemort had returned. The students didn't know what was the truth and what was a lie.

The ministry had been trying to cover up what had happened in the graveyard and the Daily Prophet had been making Harry out to be losing his mind, and only telling of the Dark Lord's return to get all attention on him. Several students had not returned this year. Parents were grossly under informed, and didn't want their students going to school with a "raving lunatic" and the "crackpot" headmaster.

Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table, ignoring the whispers that followed him and scanning the hall for Naruto and Usagi, of which he found no sign. What he did see was Seamus approaching he and Ron

"Hey did you hear?" he asked the two friends, "Dean's not coming back this year!"

They looked at him with shocked looks on their faces.

"Why?" Ron asked.

"His mum won't let him! She doesn't want him coming back to Hogwarts because… well, I'm sure you could guess…." A silence fell over the boys. Seamus walked away, feeling slightly awkward.

"It's fine," Hermione reassured Harry, sitting beside her friends. "They don't know exactly what happened."

_Neither do you,_ thought Harry, but he stayed silent. He still hadn't been able to retell the story of what had happened. Harry looked up at the staff table. In Hagrid's place, there was another professor who used to teach at the school. He shifted his eyes down the table, looking for the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. With a jolt, he saw who it was.

He had seen her at his hearing, sitting beside Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, with a sick smile on her toad-like face. She sat in the same way, now, just a few seats down from Dumbledore, wearing the same sickening smile and a fluffy pink cardigan over her robes that matched the awful bow she'd tied in her curly hair.

Umbridge.

The first year students entered the Great Hall in a straight line led by Professor McGonagall. As was customary, the sorting hat was placed on a stool in front of the staff table at the front of the hall. It sang its sorting song, but the song was different this year than it had been before. It was a warning.

The sorting began, each shaky first year coming to the front of the hall and sitting with the sorting hat on their head. Cheers erupted from each table as a new member to their house was added. Once the sorting was over, however, the sorting hat was not taken away, as it normally was. Professor Dumbledore stood and cleared his throat, successfully quieting the hall.

"Before we the feast commences, I have several announcements," the old headmaster began, "The first is that our Care of Magical Creatures professor, Professor Rubeus Hagrid, will not be returning until later in the year, and so will be substituted by Professor Grubbly-Plank until he arrives…." Well, that explained why Harry had seen him at his usual place this year, guiding the first years over the lake to the castle. It didn't however, explain _where _he had gone. Dumbledore continued on with the standard rules that Hogwarts had to uphold (and that Harry and his friends had broken every year). Harry zoned out for a bit, until he heard "…the position of professor of Defense against the Dark Arts has been filled by none other than Dolores Umbridge. I'm delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge as a new member of the Hogwarts staff."

The announcement was met with half-hearted applause. The headmaster continued, "Quidditch tryouts will be―"

"_He__m__-hem_"

It was so quiet, at first some people didn't know why Professor Dumbledore had stopped talking. But then he looked over at the fluffy pink toad with a questioning look, and people could figure out that Professor Umbridge had interrupted him. She was so short, most also hadn't realized she'd gotten to her feet to make a speech. Dumbledore sat back down, looking at her expectantly.

Ron's stomach growled as she went on and on about the importance of this and that, and so on and so forth, talking of many things people didn't care to pay attention to on empty stomachs, or any other time for that matter ("Get on with it!" Ron whispered so only Harry could hear). Finally, she sat again, and Dumbledore stood to finish what he was saying about Quidditch tryouts.

"And lastly," he said, "As you all know, the safety of our students is of the utmost importance. In light of recent times," ―Umbridge shot him a disapproving look― "Hogwarts has hired a guard to assure that safety. And because this guard does not speak or understand English, a transfer student from the same area that she is from has come as well."

When he heard the headmaster talking about them, Naruto opened the door to the room they were in and he and Usagi entered. They walked up in front of the staff table and stood on either side of Professor Dumbledore, each giving a small bow to the student body. Naruto had a big, fake smile plastered on his face, and Usagi's mask looked at them blankly through its slitted rabbit eyes.

"..And, because the exchange student will be joining the fifth year students as a member of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I believe we have one sorting left."

The smile dropped from Naruto's face.

"Naruto Uzumaki, please step up to the Sorting Hat."

* * *

Cliffy, ha! Not really, though...

(1) If you don't get this, google "tanuki"

(2)Sorry, but, right after I wrote that part, all I could think of was the puppet-pal version of Harry banging his head against the wall going "Angst… angst… angst…". If you don't know what I'm talking about, I suggest you look up "Potter Puppet Pals" on youtube or google. They're hilarious.

(3) This is numbered for two reasons… the first being that I took a passage form the book and modified it, the second being that it implies that Usagi is very… -cough- _gifted_ in the chest department.

In case you were wondering, yes, I did use the book for parts of this. No, I don't own Harry Potter. And, yes, I am too lazy to number everything. Meh.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	7. The Sorting of Naruto Uzumaki

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Kind of a short chapter...

"Speaking"

_Thinking _(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only) and "_The sorting hat speaking in someone's mind" _(this chapter only)

* * *

**Last Time:**

The smile dropped from Naruto's face.

"Naruto Uzumaki, please step up to the Sorting Hat."

* * *

**Chapter 7:** The Sorting of Uzumaki Naruto

It took him a few seconds to confirm what he had heard. Wasn't he to go into Gryffindor, so he could be near Harry to protect him? Just what was this old man thinking?

Secrecy, that's what. No one knew that Usagi was really only there to guard Harry, and they especially didn't know that Naruto was there to guard him as well. Naruto understood the need for Dumbledore to do this, to make it seem less suspicious to people like Professor Umbridge (who, by the way, reminded Naruto strongly of one of his toad summons). But what if something went wrong and he was separated from his charge?

"What!?" he whispered harshly, turning to face the old headmaster.

"It is required of all students entering the school to be sorted into a house," he replied serenely, his eyes twinkling.

"Yes, but―"

"Take a seat Mr. Uzumaki…"

Naruto turned back to the confused students, letting out a nervous laugh, once again pasting a smile on his face. He stepped forward and sat down on the stool, and allowed Professor McGonagall to place the hat on his head.

"_A little old to be starting Hogwarts, aren't you?" _

_I'm an exchange student. I'm going into the fifth year._

_"But you aren't a wizard, are you?"_ The Sorting Hat really _could_ see everything.

_I might as well be… __magic is much easier than the ninja arts._ The Sorting hat seemed to laugh a little at that.

"O_r perhaps you are just abnormally smart? Ravenclaw would suit you well there…"_

_I have to be in Gryffindor… I'm here to protect Harry Potter._

_"Hold your horses… I'm sworn to choose the house I believe you will do well in. Now let's see__ what your memories hold…_

Naruto could feel the hat inside his mind, searching each memory.

_"You're very loyal to your friends… a good trait of Hufflepuff…"_

It searched more.

_"But also very brave… not one to back down from a battle, especially to protect your friends… like a true Gryffindor…"_

Then Naruto could feel it. He was going into _that_ part of his mind.

"_A rough childhood…__ and a bitter anger…_

_Please… don't go down that way… _The Sorting hat ignored him and continued. _Stop, or you'll reach the―_

Suddenly, what sounded like a roar erupted inside his head and a jolt of electricity seemed to run through his body. He fell off the side of the stool, into nothingness.

He "woke up" in the familiar sewer-like mindscape, in front of the Kyuubi's cage. He looked around in surprise. The Sorting Hat had pulled him into his own mind?

"_Well, this is quite interesting…" _The Sorting Hat's voice echoed throughout Naruto's head. "_You have a being inside you that could pass as a true Slytherin."_

**I assume you're talking about me?**

_"Yes… But you, boy, __share__ some traits with this fox…__ Perhaps Slytherin would do you well."_

Naruto panicked a little. He knew what went on between the Gryffindors and Slytherins.

_I can't be in Slytherin, I've been sent to protect Harry Potter, a Gryffindor_

_"Ahh… that's the logical, obvious reason for it. But you would do well in Slytherin… what with the great Demon Fox living inside you."_

_I am NOT the Demon Fox!_ Naruto was nearly shaking with anger. _Don't view me as him…_

**Calm down, kid… is it really that bad?**

_Yes…__ my whole life, all I've been seen as is a demon. I know what everyone says about students who are in Slytherin― that every single one of them goes bad. I refuse to be subjected to that… it would only confirm… confirm…_

He found himself unable to continue. It would confirm what everyone said about him at home; he was a demon, not a human, and didn't deserve to be treated like a person. Being in a house notorious for producing dark wizards would only confirm his fears.

Maybe the people were right.

_"Very well, then…" _the hat said after a short while, as if sensing what Naruto meant, "_Not Slytherin. Funny, you're not the first I've had to insist that he not be in Slytherin…"_

_Who was the other?_

_"I can't tell you that… I don't have a lot of time. Now, is the reason you don't want to be in Slytherin because you need to protect Harry Potter, or because you don't want to be viewed as the demon fox? Or for a different reason entirely?"_

_W-what do you mean?_

_"You'__d do well in any one of the four houses. The bravery of a Gryffindor… the loyalty of a Hufflepuff… the intelligence of a Ravenclaw… and the cunning and sly nature of a Slytherin."_

_The success of my mission depends on this!__ I will _not_ allow myself to fail!_

Naruto now felt himself being pulled back to consciousness.

"_Well, then… might as well be…"_

* * *

The hall was quiet, save for the quiet whisperings of impatient students and Ron's growling stomach. Harry had been zoning out during Naruto's unusually long sorting. He thought back to his own sorting. That had taken a long time, too, but surely not this long… He didn't really know how long his had taken, but he hoped his sorting hadn't dragged on like Naruto's was. Harry wondered if the same type of conflict was going on with Naruto and the Sorting Hat as had happened to him.

Before he could think of this any further, he suddenly heard gasps and murmurs erupt from around him, and looked up to see that Naruto had fallen off the stool he'd been sitting on for the sorting. A few seconds later, Naruto sat up suddenly and rubbed his head.

"Wow," he said loudly, the smile reappearing on his face. "I guess I fell asleep there for a second…"

Many heads hit their empty golden plates in exasperation. Naruto stood and dusted himself off.

"So, Sorting Hat… Did you make a decision?" he asked, looking up at its frayed brim.

"I have… let's make it… GRYFFINDOR!"

The Gryffindor table burst into cheers as the bubbly blond ran over and took a seat beside Harry. He was smiling widely, while scratching the back of his head and laughing with someone over falling asleep because the Sorting Hat was taking so long. Usagi walked off to the side of the hall, leaning on the wall beside the Gryffindor table (1).

"Now that there is nothing left to say," said Dumbledore, "It's time for the feast. Tuck in!"

Mounds of food appeared in front of the students, to which they eagerly dived in. Ron created a pile on his plate that Naruto was sure could feed an Akamichi for an hour; meaning it was way too much food for a normal person to consume in a week. Ron, however, was not one to back down from a challenge such as this. The sound level in the Great Hall returned to its normal loudness.

Naruto turned to Harry and held his hand out, as if he wanted Harry to shake it.

"Hi," he said as a form of greeting, the smile still on his face, "I'm Uzuma― oops, Naruto Uzumaki." He laughed, "I always forget that that's how you say your names here…"

Harry took his hand and shook it, wondering, perhaps, if the boy had brain damage from falling off the stool. Hermione, however caught on right away, and held her hand out for shaking as well.

"I'm Hermione Granger. This is Ron Weasley and Harry Potter." Harry then realized what was going on. Leave it to Hermione to figure things out first.

"Oh _you're_ Harry Potter? I've heard so much about you!"

"It was probably all negative…" Ginny said, joining into the "introductions".

"No, where I come from, people don't buy into all that stuff they've said about you, Harry."

Ron looked over at them in confusion, his cheeks bulging with the mouthful of mincemeat pie that he'd stopped chewing midway. He swallowed and continued to stare.

"You've all gone completely―"

"Just shut up and eat your pie, Ron," Hermione said sweetly, before turning back to Naruto. "So, Naruto, tell us about your old school…"

* * *

Throughout the rest of the feast, Naruto made up stories about his former school. He had, to make it believable, included things that had actually happened to him while in the ninja academy and while on team 7 with Sakura, Kakashi, and Sasuke. It was actually pretty painful to him, but he hid it well. When the feast was over, the students were ushered out of the Great Hall and lead to their dormitories. Naruto, however, hung back and waited for the hall to empty. He then approached Professor McGonagall, who was now his head of house.

"Um… I have a question about where I'll be staying…" he said to the stern witch.

"You'll be in Gryffindor, of course. You'll be in a 5th year boy's dorm with Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, Neville Longbottom, and Seamus Finnigan."

He nodded. "I understood that part. I guess I should rephrase what I said. I'm wondering where Usagi will be staying. You know, the guard. The _female_ guard."

McGonagall seemed to realize what he was saying, and thought about it for a second.

"Don't worry, I've thought of something." She then lowered her voice considerably, "It is very important for Usagi to stay with Harry so she can protect him, and to stay with you so you can translate between her and other people…"

Naruto knew where this was going…

"So the only arrangement that could be made is for her to share a room with you and the other boys."

_Well, this is awkward…_

* * *

Using the directions he'd been given, Naruto made his way up to the Gryffindor wing of Hogwarts. When he got to the portrait of a very fat woman, there stood the ANBU guard and Neville Longbottom. Neville smiled and waved him over.

"Hey! I offered to wait for you, since you need a password to get into the common room." Neville said. He was still holding the grey, cactus-like plant.

"And what is the password?" asked Naruto, eyeing the plant warily, preparing to dodge if it spewed Stinksap again.

"I usually forget it, but I remember it this year!" He pointed to his plant, "It's _Mimbulus Mimbletonia._"

The fat lady in the painting nodded (Naruto had read of the moving pictures, but it still amazed him, inwardly, that this was even possible. It went against so many laws of physics it wasn't even funny… then again, so did many things about this mission) and the portrait swung open to reveal a hole, which Naruto and Usagi followed Neville through. They entered the red and gold common room to find many of the students lounging in the squishy chairs. They went towards the Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who were sitting in their favorite chairs closest to the fireplace. Naruto sat in a empty chair close to them, and Usagi took a spot beside the fireplace, positioned in such a way so that the wood mantle around it shielded the light from her. She seemed to blend into the shadows, her ANBU cloak aiding in the illusion.

"Hey," Hermione greeted Naruto as he sat down, "I saw you talking to Professor McGonagall… what was that about?"

"Did you get in trouble already?" joked Harry, with a small laugh.

"No, I was asking her what dorm room I'd be in, since I hadn't been told yet. Apparently I'm in the same room as you, Ron, Neville, and Seamus."

"Oh, so that's what they're doing with the extra bed…" Ron said. "Man, and I wanted to keep my stuff there, too."

"Extra bed?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, right… Dean, one of our roommates from previous years, isn't coming back this year. His mum won't let him." Ron supplied.

There was an awkward silence that followed that followed that statement. Harry looked a bit uncomfortable, and Naruto could guess why. He wasn't going to ask.

"Well," said Hermione, breaking the silence with false cheerfulness, "Our first day of classes is tomorrow, so we should go to bed soon. We wouldn't want to be tired for our first day. When you're tired, you can't learn as much, you know."

"God forbid _that_ happening, Hermione…" Ron mumbled dryly.

Soon, Hermione parted from the three boys and went up the stairs to the girls dormitories. Harry and Ron followed suit, showing Naruto which room they were in. Usagi followed silently behind. When they entered the room, however, they stopped dead in their tracks. Seamus and Neville soon came to join them, and also stopped when they peered inside the room. Naruto sighed deeply and stepped into the room, turning to face them with one hand scratching his head sheepishly. Harry stared at him disbelievingly.

"You're… joking, right?"

* * *

(1) As I was reading the Harry Potter novels, for some reason, I always imagined, when walking into the Great Hall that the order of the tables (from left to right) went: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and then Slytherin. But from what I've been told and what I've seen in movies, it goes: Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, Slytherin, and then Ravenclaw (or something, along the lines of that). So yeah, I'm going by how I imagine it to be, so the Gryffindor table is closest to the left wall, when walking into the Great Hall.

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	8. No Offense to Amphibians, But

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

I did use some passages from the book for this chapter. They're obviously not mine.

"Speaking"

_Thinking _(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

_"Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **gets angsty. Again.

* * *

**Brief recap:** Naruto, a much more depressed person on the inside than everyone knows, is sent on a long-term mission to get some time away from the abusive citizens of Konoha after his dangerous self-harm habit goes horribly wrong. His mission: protect the young prophesized-about wizard, Harry Potter, from any attempts the newly-resurrected Voldemort may have on Harry's life during his fifth year at Hogwarts. Under the guise of being the Japanese-English translator for the school's new guard, a mysterious ANBU called Usagi, Naruto has begun his mission.

And, none to far from our blonde hero, Sasuke has made a deal with Lord Voldemort.

* * *

**Last Time:**

_When they entered the room, they stopped dead in their tracks. Seamus and Neville soon came to join them, and also stopped when they peered inside the room. Naruto sighed deeply and stepped into the room, turning to face them with one hand scratching his head sheepishly. Harry stared at him disbelievingly._

_"You're… joking, right?"_

* * *

**Chapter 8:**** No Offense to Amphibians, But…**

Harry had seen this before. Once, actually, at the Quidditch World Cup, though this wasn't the same one. There was no way to really tell from the outside, but, given that this was a magical school, there was no doubt about this rather large thing taking up the space normally occupied by a couch and a small area of free space.

A tent. A magical tent.

In the middle of their dormitory.

What, _exactly_ was a tent doing in the middle of the dormitory?

Usagi moved into the dorm room past him and stood next to Naruto. Her mask looked up at him questioningly.

"_Well… Professor McGonagall said you'll be staying in here with us," _he explained, "_But there aren't enough beds, so… yeah. I'm sure this a magic tent though, so it'll be better than you might think."_ Usagi nodded slightly, and he turned back to the four boys in the doorway who were staring at him like he had 4 heads. "Well, uh… as you guys know, this is the school's guard, and I'm her translator."

"Yeah," said Seamus, "We know that already. What's with the tent?"

"Don't blame me for this, but she has to stay near me in case there is an emergency and she needs to communicate. And since there aren't any other dorms…"

The boys continued to stare, until Ron stepped forward to try and clear things up.

"Let me get this straight," he said moving to where Naruto and Usagi stood, "The school's guard is going to be staying in our room with us? She's a girl!" Despite his complaining tone, Naruto and Usagi both noticed the way Ron's eyes shifted slightly downward over her when he said the word "girl".

"Like I said," Naruto continued, "Don't blame me. Professor McGonagall was the one to set this up, so she must trust us to be mature." As he said this, Naruto had begun to feel that the mood of the room needed to be changed, and soon. He quickly turned his idiot mode to full blast, inwardly cringing, and turned into what one would assume a howler monkey would behave like if given access to 3 pounds of sugar; incredibly hyper and unnecessarily loud.

"So which bed is mine?" he shouted, seemingly launching himself in the air. Ron, wide-eyed at the sudden mood switch, pointed to the bed that has previously been occupied by Dean. Naruto ran to it and jumped onto the perfectly made bed, bouncing until it was an almost unrecognizable mess of pillows, sheets, and blankets.

Harry rolled his eyes and joined the rest of his roommates, adding to the fun now happening in the dorm room. So much for maturity…

* * *

When everyone had settled in enough for Naruto to tone down his crazy act, he calmed himself down and crossed the room to Usagi's tent. She had gone inside it quite a while ago, undoubtedly to get out of the way of the five very hyper, very unfamiliar teenage boys. Naruto knocked on the flap of the tent, finding no other way to get her attention without the attention of the others in the room. She silently opened it and beckoned him inside.

Naruto was surprised to find just how big the inside of the tent had been expanded to. It was larger than his entire apartment― though, that wasn't really saying much, considering how small his apartment was― and included a kitchen and a bathroom. Oddly, though, it _was_ fairly reminiscent of his apartment. Usagi sat at a small kitchen table; it looked as though she had just recently finished eating.

"_Are you okay with this?"_ he asked her, leaning on the doorframe of the kitchen.

"_Rooming here? Yes. Everything has been taken care of. They even realized that I wouldn't be able to eat in the great hall. My meal appeared here as soon as I entered."_

Naruto nodded and sat down at the other seat at the table.

"_Really, though. I should be asking you that,_" she continued.

"_Why's that?"_

_"I am aware of your history, Naruto-san. And know that I'm not blaming you… but can you honestly tell me you're happy acting __the way you used to? It isn't you."_

Naruto didn't respond immediately. He sat staring down at his hands, which were clasped together in front of him on the table. His school robes completely covered his arms, but he still knew what was beneath the one covering his left arm. Even under the slight henge he used during the day to make its skin appear as though no scars existed, _he_ knew they were there. He would never forget.

"_No offense," _he said after a long pause,_ "But you don't really know me well enough to judge that."_

Her mask gazed silently back into his deep blue eyes; they weren't as bright as they used to be. Now they were… subdued.

"_I realize," he continued, "That you've been there, trying to help me through this. And I appreciate that, really. But you have _no_ idea…" _His voice broke the slightest bit, but then his pained expression was replaced by a cold countenance. "_We've been __here for a month now, and it's fairly obvious you won't be showing me your face. I realize the mask is part of the post, but we're currently in an area of total privacy. I'm currently acting as your teammate, so―"_

_"Actually, Uzumaki-san,"_ she interrupted quietly, "_I am already taking a liberty by speaking as much as I do. Hokage-sama has requested that__ I not reveal my identity as of yet."_

Another moment of silence awkwardly followed.

"_I should go," _Naruto stated. It wasn't up for debate. "_I'll be getting my class schedule tomorrow, so we can discuss how we're going to go about protecting the 'school'."_

Usagi nodded, and they left it at that.

Naruto exited the tent and found himself back in the boys' dorm room. The two shinobi had been talking longer than he thought; the rest of the boys were already in bed with their curtains closed. The lights were very dim, with just enough visibility for him to find his way across the room. His night vision, however, was also very good, so it wouldn't have mattered if the light was on or not. When he reached his bed, the lights immediately went entirely out, and enveloped him in darkness.

The first of many nights at Hogwarts.

xxxxxxxxxxxThe Girl's Dorm, Several Hours Earlierxxxxxxxxxxx

Hermione Jane Granger wasn't one to let things as mentally challenging as this go― nor things that _were_ mentally challenged, which explained why she put up with Ron for so long (1). But no, there was absolutely no way she was going to give up on a puzzle such as this.

The exchange student… translator… whatever his official reason for being here was… It was all so suspicious. First of all, she had never seen, heard of, or more importantly _read_ about a student beginning Hogwarts in a different year than the first, exchange student or not. Granted, he had come to help eliminate the language barrier that existed between the guard and the rest of the population of Hogwarts.

That, however, was suspicious in itself. For the majority of the time, Naruto acted like an idiot. But his English was perfect! Usagi didn't know a singe word, so the language was obviously not common in wizarding Japan. Learning a new language requires a fair amount of intelligence.

Then there were the events that had already occurred. That time they heard a crash in the bathroom… the boggart… and now, the sorting. It hadn't looked like he had just fallen asleep. It looked as though he had been forced into unconsciousness, something the sorting hat had never caused before.

And his wand. He'd had such a strange reaction when Ollivander had told him what the core of his wand was made of. And asked about a demon fox…

Hermione pulled out a quill and a piece of parchment. Said parchment already had a growing list on it of things about Naruto and Usagi she would have to look up, including words they commonly used in conversations, words he'd let slip, and small things that could have a symbolic meaning. Hermione added a few new things to the list that she had just remembered to included. Hopefully, she would find answers soon.

xxxxxxxxxxxThe Next Dayxxxxxxxxxxx

_Could he make it _any_ more obvious?_ Naruto groaned mentally as he compared his schedule to that of Harry and Ron's. Identical. Dumbledore wasn't always one for subtlety. He stole a glance at the wizened old headmaster. Dumbledore's eyes were already on him, and they twinkled in that strange, knowing way. In a pang of sadness, Naruto was reminded suddenly of the Third Hokage. Just as quickly as those thoughts had come, however, he pushed them back out of his mind, and forced his emotional mask to remain firmly in place. He wasn't going to let something as stupid as emotions jeopardize his and Usagi's mission.

And so, he continued on to class with the others, as his ANBU partner patrolled around the rest of the school, just to keep up appearances. Through a system of summoning scrolls, either one could contact or summon the other in the case of an emergency.

Having developed a rare ability previously only accomplished by fellow Konoha shinobi Shikamaru, Naruto was able to both fall into a very light sleep and pay attention to class at the same time. This, however, was only barely enough to help him survive through his first period class, History of Magic. Even Hermione sometimes had trouble paying attention in that class.

Next was a block of double potions. Severus Snape was an active member of the Order of the Phoenix, and so had of course met blonde transfer student. Meaning he was able to ignore him and continue class.

The class brewed the Draught of Peace that day, a very finicky potion with many steps and ingredients. Through his reading, Naruto had come across is several times; it, as both the books and Snape explained, calmed anxiety and soothed agitation when brewed correctly. Incorrectly done, however, it could result in an irreversible sleep. The students were given an hour and a half to complete the complicated potion.

By the end of the class, only Hermione's cauldron was emitting the silvery mist it was supposed to. Naruto had come close, but hadn't been as meticulous as she had in doing his and ended up with a bluish steam instead. The rest of the class had various results, most of which were downright bad. Harry, on the other hand, stood in front of an empty cauldron. Snape had vanished his potion when he was nearly finished, after Harry had made a minor mistake. He got a zero for the class.

The first potions class passed without a major incident, though the potions master did send a few looks towards Naruto, Harry, and most of the Gryffindors in general that showed he wasn't about to change his yearly routine of Slytherin favoritism and Gryffindor torture.

After lunch came divination, which, unlike the previous two classes, Hermione didn't join them in. Naruto could see why. Professor Trelawney was just a little bit too eccentric― and that was coming from someone who'd had both Kakashi and Jiraiya as teachers― and obviously fake. The class spent the period trying to interpret each others' dreams.

"…and the dragon led the prince inside his cave, where there was a giant bowl of ramen!" Naruto was making up a very strange dream for Seamus to decode. "And so they both ate it." (2)

"What's ramen?" Seamus asked, laughing a little.

"What, are you nuts?"

Ron and Harry were having some trouble with this. Harry was trying to get Ron to tell one of his dreams, but he said he didn't remember any of them. And Harry wasn't about to share one of his nightmares with anyone.

"Well, I had one that I was playing Quidditch the other night," Ron said, screwing up his face in an effort to remember. "What do you reckon that means?"

"Probably that you're going to be eaten by a giant marshmallow or something," Harry replied, turning the pages of his text book without interest. (3)

It was the last class of the day, however, in which something actually happened. Normally, most students looked forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts class, but from what they'd seen at the feast the night previous and heard from other students who had already had the class earlier that day, Professor Umbridge was going to be an absolute nightmare. They weren't disappointed.

When they entered, she was sitting at her desk, giving a sickly sweet smile to everyone who entered the room. After forcing them to answer in unison when she greeted them, telling them they wouldn't need their wands for the class at all, and outlining the course aims, the entire class set to the task of reading the first chapter in their textbooks. It was all very dry and boring, and most of the people in the room weren't paying attention to a word of it.

Harry, entirely bored with reading the same passage over and over and not taking any of it in, glanced around the room. Then at Hermione; he was given a shock when he saw that her book hadn't even been opened, and her hand was raised straight and determinedly in the air. Umbridge chose to ignore her, until so many of the students were staring at her, she was forced to comply.

"What is it, Miss Granger?"she asked in her fake sweet voice, "Do you have a question on the chapter?"

"No, but I do have a question. The course outlines you gave use don't say anything about using defensive spells, only about learning the principles and history of defense."

The ministry-appointed professor laughed, and responded with, "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to _use_ a defensive spell, Miss Granger. Are you expecting to be attacked during class?"

A few more hands shot up.

"Does this mean we aren't using magic at all?" Ron asked. Umbridge ignored him.

"Isn't the point of this class to learn defensive spells?" Hermione asked.

"Are you a ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger? I didn't think so," she continued without allowing her to answer. "You aren't qualified to decide what is taught in this class. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised the new program of study. In the past, you have been not been taught correctly. In addition you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed― not to mention," she gave a nasty little laugh, "extremely dangerous half-breeds."

Up until that point, Naruto had been observing with a detached interest. That comment, however, suddenly made him extremely angry. He knew, of course, whom she was referring to, as he had been filled in on all the details both in the mission request report and when he was at Grimmauld Place. But that comment hit home. He wasn't a half breed, but something told him that if Umbridge found out what he really was, she would treat him the same as one. Probably worse.

Several people in the class objected, protesting that Lupin had been the best teacher they'd had. She ignored them, saying that she would not acknowledge them if their hands weren't raised.

"Now," she said, still holding onto the fake sweetness, "It is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more sufficient to get you through your examination, which, after all, is what school is all about." (4)

"What good is theory going to be in the real world?" said Harry loudly, raising his hand and speaking though she hadn't called on him.

"This is school, Mr. Potter, not the real world."

"So we're not going to be prepared for what's out there?"

"There's nothing out there, Mr. Potter."

"Oh yeah?" His anger had reached a boiling point. Naruto realized that he had to get the situation under control somehow before it was too late.

"But who out there would want to attack innocent children such as yourselves."

"Hmm, let's think…" Harry said sarcastically, "maybe _Lord Voldemort_?"

The class gasped. Umbridge didn't flinch. _Crap_, thought Naruto, _too late…_

"Let us make one thing perfectly clear," Umbridge said in a low voice, standing up and leaning forward, her stubby fingered hands splayed on her desk, "You have been told certain things about a certain dark wizard. You have been told that he, who was previously dead, has suddenly risen again and is at large. _This is a lie_."

"It's NOT a lie," yelled Harry, "I saw him, I fought him!"

"Detention, Potter. My office, tomorrow at five o'clock. I repeat, _this is a lie._ The Ministry guarantees that you are in no danger. The Dark Lord is gone for good."

Naruto's mind was working quickly. _If he's in detention tomorrow, then there won't be anyone to accompany him. He'll be all alone with that awful witch… I definitely don't trust her, but I won't be able to get close enough to keep an eye on her. Unless…_

Umbridge had begun to ignore Harry again, sitting back down behind her desk and instructing the class to continue reading. Harry, however, wasn't going to take that sitting down. Literally. Despite protests from Hermione, he stood, glaring at his professor for all he was worth.

"So, according to you, Cedric Diggory dropped dead of his own accord, did he?" Harry asked, his voice shaking.

There was a collective intake of breath from the class. _He's digging himself in deeper…_ thought Naruto.

"Cedric Diggory's death was a tragic accident."

"It was murder!" Harry was shaking, barely able to keep himself form breaking down. "Voldemort killed him and you know it."

Nobody moved or spoke. Umbridge was pale, and silent. Naruto took his opportunity.

"If I may interject," the blonde shinobi said politely and, it seemed to the other students at least, oddly calm and mature, "I feel I have something to say."

"Oh," she said curtly, looking over him in disgust, "Do you, Mr.…?"

"Uzumaki."

"Mr. Whatever-your-name-is. I hardly think it's appropriate for you to weigh in on a matter you know nothing about. You _are…_ foreign, correct?"

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I don't know anything about this. My country has faced wars like the one that occurred here, and the one that will occur here soon. Just because people in my country are _foreign_, doesn't mean we aren't human," he scoffed, trying to make her angry.

"Can you be so sure of that, Mr. Uzumaki?" she asked, a strangely feral grin hiding behind the honeyed up one, as if she knew something he didn't, "I'm not so sure about you, myself…"

Naruto didn't respond, but his fist clenched and unclenched by his sides as he tried to control his anger and think of a response.

"I've seen the way you behave, Mr. Uzumaki. And those…_ markings_ on your face. Honestly, one might come to the conclusion that you were some kind of demon…"

He still didn't respond, but he was now clenching his jaw, still trying to control himself. He could feel the Kyuubi inside him helping to suppress the dark chakra that was threatening to leak out.

"Now are you going to sit down, Mr. Uzumaki, or stand there all day like an idiot?" She began to ignore him again.

"Well," he said, regaining his composure, "I'm not too sure about you, either…"

"Oh? And what do you mean by that?"

"I mean… look at you! I _would_ call you a shriveled old toad, but that would be an insult to amphibians everywhere." Not to mention his summons...

Umbridge's already bulging eyes looked as though they would shoot across the room and hit him like bullets.

Score: Naruto 1, Umbridge 0.

* * *

"Why did you do that?" Harry demanded as he and Naruto walked down the hallway. Harry was clutching a rolled up piece of pink paper, on which Professor Umbridge had written a note addressed to professor McGonagall.

"What, call her a toad?" Naruto asked, laughing, "You can't tell me you didn't see the resemblance…"

"No!" said Harry, obviously still angry, "Why did you get in trouble like that. Now you'll have detention, too!"

_That was the point,_ thought Naruto, keeping an idiot grin on his face but not saying anything out loud.

Just after a close encounter with Peeves, who happened to be juggling ink bottles at the moment, the two boys found themselves in Professor McGonagall's office. After giving both boys a biscuit, she warned Harry about giving away too much to Umbridge. After all, she did work for the Ministry. She then informed both boys that they had detention with Umbridge in her office at five o'clock every night for the rest of the week.

Needless to say, it didn't help improve Harry's mood.

xxxxxxxxxxxAt Malfoy Manorxxxxxxxxxxx

Lord Voldemort had seen the extent of this foreign boy, Sasuke's, repertoire― at least, that's what he thought. And even though the dark haired teen had been holding back a lot and still had many, many techniques he kept hidden, he had still shown a great deal of strength.

As Sasuke dispelled the last of his shadow clones with a fireball jutsu, then turned and bowed to the snake-like wizard who stood nearby.

"I hope this will show you my usefulness," he said.

"Wandless magic…" the Dark Lord mused, "How rare."

"There are more like me. Prior to coming here, just after I got rid of my incompetent former master, I gathered a small team of very strong individuals. All are skilled in various forms of the 'magic' I have just shown you. I shall bring them to serve you with me. If you agree, of course…"

"Agree? And just who are you to make deals with me? I get the impression that you don't know who you are dealing with."

Sasuke held his tongue. There were several things he could have said in response, but none of them would get him any closer to achieving his goal.

"…Nevertheless…" the dark wizard continued, "You've piqued my interest…"

Sasuke smiled ever so slightly. _Everything is working perfectly…_

* * *

Yeah, it's a weird place to end it, but I really wanted to post the chapter.

(1) I know it sounds like I'm making fun of Ron a lot, but I'm not really... i love Ron and all his slowness. It's not bashing, i swear!

(2) From some parody doujinshi...

(3) Taken from the book (page 238). I really couldn't resist. I love the random little bits of humor that J.K. Rowling adds in the story. It's kinda dry and cheeky…

(4) This whole section has bits and pieces from chapter 12 of the book. I love what she says about school though, it cracks me up. It sure seems that way sometimes, though…

I don't really like using this much of the book in the chapter (not all was word for word, but some was), but I felt that the exchange between Umbridge and Harry had to develop basically in the same way as it did in the book. I don't think there will be too many more instances where I do this.

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	9. Note: poll

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

****placeholder; skip to next chapter.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	10. Detentions with Dolores Umbridge

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

"Speaking"

_Thinking _(Whatever their native language is)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **angst. A lot of it.

* * *

**Last Time: **Harry and Naruto both received detention with professor Umbridge; Sasuke continued trying to gain a mysterious deal with Lord Voldemort.

* * *

Chapter 9: Detention with Dolores Umbridge

The next day dawned dark and rainy, making the ceiling at breakfast cast a dark mood over the Hogwarts students.

"Hagrid still isn't here," said Harry. No one had seen any sign of the half-giant since school had begun.

"Dumbledore isn't making a big deal of it, though," Hermione reasoned, "So he must know where Hagrid is. Wherever he is, it must be important."

"Well, on the plus side, we don't have potions today," said Ron, "I don't know about you, but I'll take all the Snape-free days I can get."

"And on the downside," Harry added, "Naruto and I have detention with Umbridge later."

"Ugh, that horrible woman… In a way it's good he'll be there with you. I don't trust her at all. At least with Naruto there, she won't be alone with you."

"Speaking of Naruto…" said Ron, "Where is the little nutcase, anyway?"

"Nutcase?" asked Harry, turning to Ron, confused.

"Oh, come on… Half the time he's a complete spaz, and the other half he acts all 'dark and mysterious'. And he practically got detention on purpose!"

"Actually," said Hermione, leaning in towards her friends and inspiring them to do the same, "I'm surprised you noticed it, too. I'm still not too sure about him, myself."

"What do you mean?" asked Harry. He really hadn't given any of this much thought. He'd had other things on his mind…

"I mean that―" She stopped as she was nudged by Ron.

"Shh…" he whispered, pointedly glancing at the door to the Great Hall. Naruto stood there, looking tired. The blonde shinobi approached the three friends and took an empty spot nearby. He piled some food onto his plate lazily, not really paying attention as to what he was getting.

"You look tired," Hermione commented, watching as Naruto grabbed yet another waffle.

"Yeah, I didn't sleep to well last night," Naruto explained, "I guess I'm not really used to the time difference between here and Japan yet."

"How many hours' difference is there?" Harry asked.

"About eight…" Naruto answered, "It's completely messing with my system." In truth, there was a larger time difference for him to overcome, as the hidden continent from which he came was farther east than Japan was. But that wasn't the real reason for his sleeplessness, anyway. Naruto, having gone on many missions in which he had to travel by night or stay up for days in a row, was relatively unaffected by the switch. And any difference he'd felt had been taken care of in the time he spent at Grimmauld Place. No, that wasn't the reason at all…

What Umbridge had said had gotten to him. Much more than it should have. Every time he closed his eyes, he was confronted by images of the villagers shouting similar things at him. Calling him a demon, blaming him for family deaths, telling him he was worthless. And that was not even the most troubling thing.

How did Umbridge know what to say in the first place? She'd obviously chosen her words very carefully, making his inside twist as much as possible. Did she know about him? And if so, how? As unlikely as it was, perhaps it was all a coincidence…

Or perhaps not.

In any case, Naruto knew he couldn't let his emotions get in the way of his and Usagi's mission. So if protecting Harry, their charge, meant he had to spend some quality time with the loathsome woman, so be it.

"Well," said Ron, "That would explain why you were so completely bonkers so late on the first night here."

"Yeah," Naruto said, blocking out his previous thoughts, "That and I was really excited to finally be here. I've heard a lot about…"

Hermione stopped paying attention to the conversation between the boys at that point. She was looking at Naruto curiously, pretending to pay attention, all the while trying to hide her suspicions of him.

What he'd said about the time differences had been inaccurate. Japan was eight hours _ahead_ of Great Britain… that meant that late at night there would feel like even later or even really early in the morning to him. So, logically, he would be really tired then. And now, at breakfast, it would feel like mid afternoon for him. So why wasn't he full of energy? (1)

Hermione discreetly pulled out the growing list of things she needed to look up and added a few things to said list. She hoped she would at least be able to get some answers soon.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx In Konoha xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Tsunade was worried. She still wasn't sure if sending Naruto on a mission so soon after what had happened was the right choice. Sure, it was helpful for him to spend some time away from Konoha… but had the wizarding world been the right place?

She knew the ANBU that Naruto had gone with cared deeply for his well-being. She also knew, though, that that particular ANBU was new to the force. This was her first mission, in fact. It was traditional for new recruits to go on a long-term mission either alone, or with another shinobi who was being considered for the protection squad.

And that's just what Naruto was. Despite protests from several high-ups, Tsunade was doing everything in her power to get Naruto into a respectable rank. He'd missed the Chunin exams, and there had been no way to prove he was good enough, having been away for so long. But to become an ANBU, he needed to be hand-picked by either the Hokage herself, or someone else with a lot of power in the village. Luckily, Naruto _had_ been chosen directly by her.

She knew he was very strong, smart, and incredibly skilled. In the time between the incident and when he'd left for this mission, he'd proven that to her when she'd supervised his training. Tsunade was sure he could handle it.

She sighed slightly, looking out her window at the Hokage monument. More specifically, she was staring at the carved features of the Yondaime. Naruto bore such a resemblance to his father…

She then smiled slightly, making up her mind. No matter what, Naruto would be invited to join the ANBU ranks. Now, it was only a matter of getting him a mask. Of course, she knew the perfect thing he would be represented by…

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Back at Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The day passed quickly and without further incident (save for a brief confrontation between Harry and Malfoy in Care of Magical Creatures, which was fairly commonplace by now). During the day, the spirits of both Harry and Naruto had been raised slightly from their moods at breakfast. Now, however, it was dinnertime. Then came their detention.

Naruto appeared much happier and carefree than he had at the breakfast table that morning. Harry, however, was not. He was very hungry, but ate slowly and deliberately, as if this would be his last meal.

The two boys walked in silence to Professor Umbridge's office. When they arrived, Harry knocked hesitantly on the door, and the toad-woman called them in sweetly. Harry scarcely recognized the office from when Lupin or Moody had inhabited it. Instead of fancy auror equipment or books on defense, there was:

Pink… check.

Lace… check.

Crocheted things… check.

Floral patterns… check.

Technicolor kittens… check.

The urge to gouge out one's eyes with a rusty spork… check and mate.

Umbridge sat behind her desk with her hands folded neatly in front of her, smiling in a not-so-inviting way. Two student desks-draped with lace- were positioned in front of her large one. Each detentionee took one of the seats. They both had a piece of parchment in front of them, blank and waiting.

"Good evening, boys," she said in her poisonous way.

"Evening," Harry replied stiffly. Naruto didn't reply, but she didn't seem to pay him any notice. "Um… Professor…" Harry began, remembering what Angelina, the Quidditch captain had told him earlier that day. "I-I wanted to ask you a… a favor."

Her bulging eyes narrowed. "Oh yes?"

"Well, I'm on the Gryffindor Quidditch team," he began, "And there are tryouts on Friday. The team captain wants all of the team to be there so… you know, I was wondering… would I be able to maybe… skip that detention, and… have it another… day?" His voice trailed off by the end of his request. As he was saying it, he knew there would be no use in even asking her.

"Oh, no we can't have that," she smiled 'lovingly', "You're here to be punished. We can't just let you get out of it all willy-nilly. Speaking of which, we don't have all night for this, dear."

Naruto could hear the Kyuubi growling inside him. It was obvious the fox demon thoroughly hated this woman.

"Now…" she instructed, "You'll be writing lines for this detention. No, no, Mr. Potter, you won't need your quill for this." He drew his hand back out from his bag, where he had been trying to find something to write with. From behind her back, Umbridge brought out two long, black quills with unusually sharp points. "Nor will you need ink. You'll be using these." She handed one to each of them.

"What should we write?" asked Harry.

"Mr. Potter will write 'I must not tell lies'. And you, Mr. Uzumawhatsit, will write… 'demon child'."

Naruto ignored the way his body was shaking slightly, both from anger and gripping sadness. He tried to cover it up with sarcasm. "No 'I will not _be_ a demon child'? Or 'I will not behave like a demon child'?"

"No," she said with an air of nonchalance, "This will do just fine. You may begin."

"But Professor," Harry said softly, trying to ignore how shaken Naruto looked. "You haven't told us… how many times should we write it?"

"Oh, just long enough for the message to _sink in_." Umbridge continued her smiling, as the boys set to the task before them.

Naruto pressed the sharp tip of the quill to the parchment and wrote out the two words he was instructed to write; the words oozed out of the page, dark and shining. It didn't take long to realize what exactly he was writing in. Blood. A split second after he'd finished writing, a searing pain hit the back of his hand. He let out an involuntary hiss of pain. The words he'd written were carving themselves into his skin.

Beside him, Harry had just finished writing as well. The Boy Who Lived let out a gasp as the same pain cut into his hand. He stared disbelievingly at the words on his hands; they disappeared back into the skin. The area was red, but quite smooth. He then shifted his gaze up towards Umbridge, whose smile had not disappeared in the slightest.

"Something wrong, dear?" she asked, pretending she didn't have a clue.

"No," Harry ground out. He knew there was no way of getting out of this, and no way was he going to show weakness to that disgusting woman. He just took a deep breath, and began to write again.

Naruto was still frozen, staring down at the back of his hand, where his skin had healed nearly instantly. _Man… this is going to really fuck with my resolve…_ He put the sharp quill to the paper again, and steeled himself for the pain.

This went on for several hours, though neither of the two boys bothered to glance at the time. Finally, after what seemed like forever to them, Umbridge told them to stop. She strode over to them, holding out her stubby little fingers to take their hands in hers. She inspected the back of their hands, where the words were not visible, but the skin was red raw.

"Tut, tut," she said, smiling, "I don't seem to have made much of an impression on either of you yet. We'll just have to try again tomorrow evening, won't we? You may go."

They left gratefully. By the time they got back to the Gryffindor common room, it must have been past midnight. Harry couldn't help but notice that Naruto wouldn't meet his eyes the entire way back to their dorm room.

* * *

The next morning, Harry scrambled to finish his homework, as he'd had no time the night before. Naruto had already finished his before they'd gone to detention. For some reason, neither of the two teens had told their friends that the detention with Umbridge had been anything but lines.

The next few days passed terribly for the two of them. Harry was drowning under a mountain of homework. That mountain grew larger with every night he spent with Umbridge. Naruto, on the other hand, was not behind in his homework. There was another problem with the blonde shinobi.

Usagi wasn't the only one to notice the change in Naruto's personality― again. He was incredibly quiet and had barely said anything to her. He was completely silent when in a crowd of any size, and refused to tell her what was wrong. The ANBU realized Naruto didn't entirely trust her; but she also knew he didn't have much of a reason to. True to what she'd been told about emotions being a hindrance to her position, she was pained by this knowledge.

Naruto was barely holding on. It was getting so hard to keep up appearances; his idiot mask was just crumbling apart. He hadn't cut or even attempted to since that day at Grimmauld Place (if the mirror incident counted). What occurred in Umbridge's detentions was not like cutting. He had no control over it. It did succeed, however, in making him want to harm himself all the more. Cutting was his drug. When he'd stopped, it had taken a while to get the thoughts of cutting out from his mind, though they never really left. Now, though, with the temptation always there, these thoughts were constantly on his mind. His weapons pouch was always with him, hidden in his school bag. Kunai, for reasons only known to him, would not give him the same satisfaction as a razor blade, but they were always plenty sharp…

On the third evening the two students had detention, something slightly new happened. Just around the same time― about two hours into the detention― they both started to notice that the words weren't fading quickly anymore. Then, as they finished writing their latest line literally at the same time, the words didn't fade at all. The remained scratched there, oozing droplets of blood. At the sound of both pointed quills pausing, the toad-like professor looked up. She came around from behind her desk and examined both of their hands (though not much attention was paid toward Naruto's).

"Ah, good," she said softly, "This should serve as a reminder. You may leave for tonight. Though… do come back tomorrow. I think we can etch the message in a little deeper with another evening's work. On second thought… Mr. Potter, please come alone tomorrow evening. It seems you are the one who still needs some discipline."

It was hard to believe there was someone Harry could hate more than Snape.

On their way back to the tower, as Harry mentally ranted about how evil she was and Naruto remained silent and zombie-like, they ran into a startled Ron. He had his broom with him, and looked like he was trying to hide it behind him. When confronted, he explained that he'd been practicing on his broom for the past few days, and planned on trying out for the position of keeper.

And then, as Harry reached up and scratched his nose with his bleeding hand, Ron of course saw the words etched into the skin. Harry had no success in hiding it, and his red haired friend grabbed the offending appendage before he could react. This led to Ron looking at Naruto's hand as well, and then an explanation to him as to what had been happening in the detentions. Harry still refused to tell either McGonagall or Dumbledore, though, unwilling to show Umbridge weakness. Naruto seemed like he was in a slight daze.

Immediately upon entering the common room, the three Gryffindors were met with the painted mask of Harry's ANBU guard. Usagi stared at them silently, her eyes not visible behind the mask, but her gaze piercing nonetheless.

"_Naruto-san, it's obvious there's something wrong,"_ she said quietly, "_And I feel it could jeopardize the mission if you can't focus. Not only that, but I feel you owe it to me both as a teammate and a friend to tell me what has been happening."_

"_It's nothing,"_ he said simply, trying to pass by her. She held her arm out to the side, blocking his path.

"_I don't like doing this…"_ she said, flicking her wrist slightly so that a kunai, which had been in her sleeve, was now held ready in her hand. "_But you seem to forget that we aren't only here to protect the boy. Hokage-sama also sent you here with me so you can get better." _Naruto glared at her, but it was halfhearted. He knew she spoke the truth. It didn't mean he was going to tell her, though… "_Not to mention the fact that I outrank you… while I know that you indeed do have a lot of skill, I will not hesitate to use force, if necessary."_

Naruto sighed, and lifted his hand up to push her arm out of the way. Forgetting that was the hand with the words carved into it, he'd unwittingly made the same mistake that Harry had. She grabbed his hand and looked down at it.

"_What does it say?"_ she asked, sounding puzzled, concerned, and horrified all at once. He didn't answer right away.

"…_it says… 'demon child'."_

Her mask stared at him for a while. He wished he could at least see her eyes, to help let him know what she was thinking.

"_I'm sorry__, Naruto," _she said quietly after a while, "_I'll leave you alone, now." _With that, she retreated back to a shadowy corner of the common room.

This exchange had, of course, attracted the attention of the students who were still sitting in the common room (2). Hermione, especially. She jotted down a few more notes, then hid the roll of parchment she's been writing them on and went back to doing an essay for Herbology.

* * *

Harry went for his final detention that night. Naruto of course did not trust Professor Umbridge, but he was at least sure she wouldn't do anything more than what she had been doing to both of them for the past. For the moment, he would allow Harry and Umbridge to be alone in the same room, knowing he would have to be completely out of his mind to get another detention with the disgusting woman.

About an hour an a half into it, Harry's wound was bleeding profusely. Umbridge walked over to him, holding out her hand to inspect his. As she took hold of him to examine the words, pain seared across the scar on his forehead, coupled with a strange sensation somewhere around his midriff. She allowed him to go, and he left quickly, shaking at what had just happened.

When he returned to the common room, he was met by celebrations, and the news that Ron was going to be Gryffindor's new keeper. When he told his friends about what had happened with his scar, he was met by the usual response: go tell Dumbledore. Harry, still angry that Dumbledore had seemingly been avoiding him, refused again. Naruto, who was sitting nearby delighting in the rich flavor of the wizard drink of choice, butterbeer― his hand bandaged as it had refused to heal― saw a similar thing to what he'd seen at the headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix. Harry was easily angry with his friends, yet seemed to brush off their attempts to help him.

The boy was cracking under this burden that had been placed on him. Truthfully, Naruto didn't think Harry could handle the pressure.

* * *

1. Time zones make my brain twitch…

2. Tad bit of an inconsistency on J.K.'s part… By the description she gives of the exchange between Harry and Ron as Harry is returning from detention, we are led to believe that it is fairly late. We know, however, that Harry was only two hours into his detention. Assuming Harry began his detention around 6 (the novel actually says 5), it would only be about 8 at that time. So there would still be students in the common room.

The part with Tsunade was a nice little twist. Um, or did people expect that? I had it planned for a while, but I wasn't going to reveal it until later… oh well! (And it's kinda obvious what his mask is going to be…)

Just a note: yes, passages were taken form the book (mostly off and on during the scenes with Umbridge). Chapter 13 was used. I obviously do not own Harry Potter or Naruto. Hm… I wonder if J.K. Rowling or Masashi Kishimoto ever read fanfictions of their own work…

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	11. Letters and fires and plans, oh my!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

…sucks, but this chapter is almost filler-like in nature… (it's one of those 'gotta get from point A to point B' things).

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing _(the language should be apparent, especially for writing)

**Kyuubi Speaking**

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **come on, people, get with the program… rated M for language, angst, and boyish attitude (see note 2).

* * *

**Last Time: **Naruto and Harry survived the hell that is Umbridge's detentions. The first week of school is over.

* * *

**Chapter 10: Letters and fires and plans, oh my!**

Harry had sent a very obscurely worded letter to Sirius on Saturday morning, followed briefly by a quick chat with Cho. He was feeling good about how things were going with her, at least for the moment, and was put in a much better mood than he had been recently. Then the bad news came.

Somehow, it had been discovered that Sirius was hiding in London. The wizarding trio was willing to bet that Lucius Malfoy had something to do with it. Not only that, but a member of the Order, Sturgis Podmore, had been sentenced to six months in Azkaban for trying to get past a high-security door in the Ministry. Though the three had been speaking in hushed tones, Naruto still heard and, later, translated to Usagi. Considering the two shinobi had not been informed of anything, they assumed it was not something that was an urgent threat to Harry's safety. Later that day, the Gryffindors had had their first Quidditch practice (with some not-so-great results from their new keeper).

The next day―at night when the boys were doing their homework in the common room― Ron received a letter from his older brother, Percy. The older Weasley warned his younger brother both about the dangers of remaining friends with Harry, and also about the amount of time for which Dumbledore would remain headmaster, which, in his opinion, was soon ending. The letter naturally didn't sit well with the Boy-Who-Lived. He of course knew that the Daily Prophet had been insulting him as of late, but to see it there in Percy's handwriting…

Naruto was over sitting with Hermione and Ginny, as Hermione had roped him into helping her knit items of clothing for unsuspecting house elves. He didn't have the chance to read the letter before Ron crumpled it up angrily and threw it in the fire. But he could definitely tell, by their reactions, that it wasn't good.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Naruto were the only ones left in the common room. Usagi had left to scout out the hallways of the school. Suddenly, Naruto felt a strange presence in the room with them, and Harry began to stare at the fire intently. He slid off his chair and was now crouching before the flames.

"What are you doing down there?" Ron asked uncertainly.

"I've just seen Sirius' head in the fire," he replied calmly. He'd seen Sirius do the same thing last year, during the Triwizard Tournament. Sure enough, there was Sirius' face, staring back at them with a smile.

Sensing the immediate need for secrecy, Naruto discreetly cast a quick genjustu around the room, making anyone who entered see nothing more than a group of friends doing their homework, as they had been moments earlier. He joined the rest of the group as they crowded around the hearth.

"Well it's about time you were the only ones in the room," laughed Sirius. "I've been checking every hour..." At Hermione's stern look, he quickly added, "Don't worry, no one saw me. Well… that guard caught a glimpse of me a few hours ago, but she must have recognized me. Anyway, we'd better be quick, just is case. Now Harry― your scar."

Harry explained what happened when he was in Umbridge's office, and Sirius waved it off as being merely a sign that Voldemort was powerful again, which they already knew.

"Well, that woman is foul enough to be a Death Eater," Harry growled, and his friends nodded in agreement.

"She's no Death Eater, Harry… The world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters," Sirius said with a smile, "She's a nasty piece of work, though― you should hear Remus talk about her."

"Does Lupin know her?" asked Harry quickly. He knew the professor had said something about half-breeds during class.

"No but she drafted a bit of anti-werewolf legislation that makes it almost impossible for him to get a job."

"What does she have against werewolves?" asked Hermione.

"I think she's scared of them. Apparently she loathes part-humans― any type of half-breed, really. Werewolves, merpeople, centaurs… Are you alright?"

Sirius was looking over at Naruto, who was glaring at a spot in front of him with his eyes narrowed dangerously. His hand, which rested on his knee, was bunched into a tight fist, making the words 'demon child' stand out as white scars against his tan skin.

During the past week, while he was in detention, he'd caught on to Umbridge's plan. She wanted him to keep carving those words into his skin until he didn't heal. So, he'd told the Kyuubi to not even attempt to heal the wounds yet. Therefore, when he wrote his lines, his skin healed in the same way that Harry's did. But the night after his last detention, having no further need to keep the wound open, he'd asked Kyuubi to heal it for him. They then both discovered that he couldn't. Not right away, anyway…

There was something about the magic that the quill had contained that was making it harder for the Kyuubi to heal him. He was able to eventually, but the process had been unusually painful and still left a scar. When the skin on the back of Naruto's hand tightened at all― as in the case of him making a fist― the words there stood out as clear as day.

"…ruto, what's wrong?"

One of the four teens beside him, he wasn't too sure which one given that he hadn't been paying an ounce of attention, snapped him out of his thoughts about how vile a woman Professor Umbridge was. He looked over at them; they were looking at him incredulously, and slightly concerned. He turned back towards the fire.

"I'm fine. Continue." He'd waved off their concerns with a sense of finality, and instructed Sirius to continue speaking in an authoritative way that others present had neither heard before nor expected.

"Anyway…" said Sirius, ignoring the tone of the blonde boy's voice, "The ministry has some sort of strange concern with the Defense Against the Dark Arts class at Hogwarts. The Minister thinks Dumbledore is forming some sort of private army or something to take on the Ministry of Magic."

"That's crazy!" exclaimed Ron, "It's the stupidest thing I've ever heard, and that includes that stuff that Luna Lovegood comes up with."

"Though, it _does_ explain why she isn't letting us use any actual magic in class…" stated Hermione.

Naruto got up and walked away, as they continued their conversation on things such as Hagrid and the _Daily Prophet_. When Sirius' head disappeared with a soft _pop_, he dispelled the genjustu. He then calmly ascended the stairs to the boys' dorms, and went to bed.

Hermione had a few more things to add to her list. Unfortunately for her, she still had not found any good information to go on. But as sure as her name was Hermione Jane Granger (1), she _would_ get to the bottom of it…

* * *

Hogwarts High Inquisitor.

Those three words, when separate, were nothing special, really (sure, one was a magic school for witches and wizards, but who doesn't see that everyday?). But when strung together in that particular order, it was enough to instill fear and loathing into the hearts of 80 percent of the school.

Which was, coincidentally, the percentage of the Hogwarts population that absolutely couldn't stand Dolores Umbridge. The other 20 percent comprised of mostly the Slytherins, and Filch. Even Snape couldn't stand the wretched woman.

So what did the Ministry of Magic do?

They made her the Hogwarts High Inquisitor. She could now inspect any and all teachers during classes. If she found any she didn't like, she had the authority to fire them.

The news of this was delivered by a group of plain brown owls, carrying the propaganda rag known as the _Daily Prophet_. This sign of the imminent apocalypse, called simply 'Educational Decree Twenty-Three', showed just how far the Ministry was willing to go to stop Dumbledore's fictional attempts at a military-style coup, with an army composed of eleven- to seventeen-year-old students.

Perhaps that description was a tad bit over dramatic. However; 80 percent of the Hogwarts population would say it was accurate.

At breakfast that Monday morning, when they first heard this news, the occupants of the Gryffindor table were positively outraged. Just how much power were they going to let her have over them?

Later that day, Umbridge inspected Divination, with some 'interesting' results…

In Umbridge's class, Harry nearly got another week's worth of detention, this time for making a comment about Professor Quirrell, who the current Defense instructor had complimented. He got out of it after some smooth talking from Naruto which, in reality, was a pleasantly-worded threat to make so much trouble, he'd have detention with her for most of the year, regardless of what that meant. Just so he could "spend every moment possible" with her. Umbridge had looked at him with disgust; the feeling was mutual.

Harry had, however, gotten one night's detention during Care of Magical Creatures, which Umbridge had been inspecting. Malfoy had been bragging about getting attacked by a hippogriff again, and Harry had angrily reminded him it was only because of his own stupidity in the first place.

Hermione had made up her mind. This power-mad Umbridge had had free reign for long enough, and it was time to do something about it. So when Harry returned around midnight from his detention with Umbridge― his hand bleeding so severely, he'd had to wrap his scarf around it― Hermione and Ron were there waiting for him. Naruto didn't want to seem suspicious, so, while the real him was upstairs in bed, a clone of him was down in the common room, henge'd to look like a text book that someone had left on a table nearby to where the three friends sat.

"I was thinking…" said Hermione, as Harry soaked his hand in the essence of murtlap solution she'd made for him. "If Umbridge isn't going to teach us anything, well… I was thinking we could just… teach ourselves?"

"You want us to do _more_ work?" asked Ron disbelievingly. "Harry and I are behind homework already, and it's only the second week!"

"There are things more important than homework, Ron!" Well, that was certainly a phrase they'd never thought they'd hear her say… "And I don't mean we just look up some things in the library. We need a teacher. We need _you_, Harry."

There was a slight pause.

"Need me for what?"

"To be our teacher, of course. Think about it… think about all the things you've done!"

The next few minutes were filled with Ron and Hermione trying to convince Harry he could do it. While they prodded him and smirked knowingly, Harry was getting more and more angry. Which, predictably, led to another outburst from Harry, jam-packed with 'you don't know what it's like' and filled to the brim with boyish attitude(2). When he was done yelling, things were of course awkward between the friends. Once she had at least convinced him to think about it, Hermione went upstairs to bed. Ron then went up to the dorms, too, followed soon by Harry.

When they had gone, the clone dispelled. Naruto, who had been awoken when his sensitive ears picked up the yelling from downstairs, winced slightly as he absorbed the information gathered by the clone.

_An army, huh…? That's not a bad idea…_

In the bed beside him, Harry settled in for another restless night. His dreams that night, as they had been so many nights for a while, were plagued by visions of a long, dark corridor, at the end of which was a locked door. The morning after, he awoke with his scar prickling.

* * *

The next few weeks moved quickly by. One day during that time― September 16, to be exact― something rather interesting had happened at the breakfast table. As usual, owls flew in to the Great Hall that morning to deliver the daily mail. But one surprising bird flew in majestically, soaring around the hall and gaining the attention of almost everyone. They were all wondering who owned the hawk― for that's what it was― and the large rolled message it carried on its back. Naruto and Usagi both recognized the hawk immediately. It was a messenger hawk from Konoha. But was what was it doing all the way in Great Britain?

Naruto stood up and whistled loudly. The great bird flew down to him and landed on his outstretched arm. He looked at the official-looking scroll the bird was carrying; on the outside, beside where his name was printed neatly, was an ornate seal, which, he knew, was used by the Hokage for very official business. He untied the scroll from the bird, and it flew up to rest in the rafters. The surrounding Gryffindors looked at him curiously.

"There aren't many owls where I live," he explained truthfully, "We use hawks to send messages."

Wondering what could possibly be inside, he attempted to open the scroll… and it wouldn't budge. Sighing exasperatedly, and to the shock of everyone around, he cut his thumb on his teeth and smeared some of the blood on the seal of the scroll. When he opened the scroll, another folded note fell out, but he ignored it for the moment. He cleared a place on the table and it rolled open in front of him. His eyes widened at the content.

_Dated September 2  
Uzumaki Naruto-san,  
In light of your recent accomplishments in the shinobi arts, you have been invited to join the __Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai (ANBU). This honor is extended to exceptional shinobi of Konohagakure. A request was made by the Honorable Godaime Hokage, and approved by the high village council. Considering you are away on a long-term mission at this point in time, there will be no traditional induction, and your current mission will serve as your first mission as an ANBU, given that the level of the mission has been raised―_

He paused for a moment as he sensed Usagi beside him. He looked up at her and then nodded, allowing her to read over his shoulder.

―_raised from a B-class mission to an S-class mission. According to some information that has recently come to our attention, several highly dangerous S-class criminals are known to be in the general area of your current post. They may be a threat to your mission, and extra care should be taken to protect the client (one Harry James Potter, of London).  
We will require your response soon. Should you accept the invitation, a representative will arrive at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to present you with your mask, sword, and uniform.  
Signed,  
Kinniku Keiren  
Head of Konohagakure Special Forces department_

Naruto rolled the scroll up again and put it aside as he picked up and began to read the other.

_Hey kid,  
The formality of it all just gets you, doesn't it? Anyway… I hope you're doing okay there.  
So are you surprised? I saw you training before you left. Why didn't you ever show anyone how good you are? Currently, your rank says that you're a genin, and that is so grossly inaccurate, I had to do __something.  
So I convinced the council to approve your invitation to be an ANBU. It took a little arm twisting (literally and figuratively) but I got them to agree. You'll do great in this position, Naruto. That is, if you accept it. You can always decline…  
Take care of yourself,  
Tsunade, Godaime Hokage  
(That's Baa-chan to you, brat)_

Naruto found himself smiling when he reached the end of the letter. He really_ was_ surprised he'd been appointed to ANBU. Normally one had to be at least a chunin before being promoted that far… and considering who he was, it must have been even harder for Tsunade to do this for him.

"Well, who was it from?" asked Hermione as Naruto folded the note again and put it away.

"My old headmaster," he lied in response, "Or, headmistress I guess in this case." He laughed a little at how that sounded.

"And the blood?"

"We're unnecessarily secretive."

"So what was the letter for?" asked Harry.

"It says that, had I been attending that school this year, I'd be the equivalent of head boy."

"You, head boy?" Ron asked, surprised.

Naruto laughed a little, thinking of the other students that he'd actually gone to the academy with. "You should see the other students… Say, does anyone have any parchment?"

Hermione, always the one with school supplies, handed him a blank sheet, on which he wrote a short, simple message.

_September 16  
Baa-chan,  
Of course I accept.  
I'm doing fine,  
Naruto_

He was about to call the hawk back down, but then added, as an after thought, to the bottom;

_(P.S. It seems to take quite a while for these letters to cross the continents. I hope this reaches you soon.)_

When he had finished, he called the bird back down, attached the message to it, and it flew away back out of the hall. Behind her mask, Usagi smiled slightly. Despite his issues with Professor Umbridge, Naruto's smiles were becoming more genuine with each passing day.

* * *

Sometime around the end of September, Hermione asked Harry again if he would teach them― plus anyone else who wanted to learn― Defense against the Dark Arts. He finally agreed and a plan was set for the first Hogsmeade weekend, which was set for the first Saturday in October.

In those few weeks, Hermione was surprised to find that Naruto was doing just as well as her in all of his classes. This was odd, since he seemed like he was hardly trying most of time. That didn't really help remedy her suspicions of him, but in the past few weeks, she'd somehow begun to trust him more. It wasn't like he'd done anything wrong, after all…

The day of the first Hogsmeade trip arrived. The students that were going happily entered the wizarding village to spend some time with their friends. Naruto and Usagi were among those present. However, this included a plan…

Naruto had made three clones, to which he gave more chakra than usual so that they would not dispel from a simple bump, but from a direct attack. One of the clones would be posing as him in the village, one would be Usagi in the village― to appease those who said the guard should be in Hogsmeade― and one would be Usagi in the school― to appease those who said she should be _there_. The real Naruto transformed into a random 5th year who he knew was not going to Hogsmeade that particular weekend. Usagi transformed to look like the same girl that she had while riding on the train.

The Golden Trio had decided they would spend a little time around the village before proceeding with the plan of their own. The real Naruto stuck close to Ron and Harry as they went into Honeyduke's Sweet Shop in Hogsmeade. Usagi and the Naruto clone stayed near Hermione.

The bookworm didn't notice them following her as she entered Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, which, contrary to its name, also sold stationary and magical books. They were inside the store for a little while, when Usagi noticed something and remembered the small amount of wizard money she had in her pocket. She turned to the Naruto clone.

"_I have to ask her something," _she said quietly.

"_It can't wait?" _asked the clone. Usagi shook her head and pulled him over to Hermione. The bushy haired girl was surprised at Naruto's appearance, but greeted him anyway. The girl― a third year, perhaps?—looked somewhat familiar.

"Naruto, what are you doing here?"

"_Tell her I'm Usagi. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."_

As it turns out, there was no need for Naruto to even tell her. As soon as Hermione heard the girl speak, she realized who it was in front of her and her eyes grew wide. But this girl was far too short and young to be the school's guard…

"Polyjuice potion," Naruto's clone supplied, sensing Hermione's silent question. He knew she would know what that was.

"_Okay," _said Usagi, playing with the long hair that was resting on her shoulder,_ "Now leave, please."_

"_What? I thought you had to ask her something."_

"_Yeah, but I can do it."_

The clone shrugged, but obliged. He told Hermione that he had to leave for a second, and then did so, leaving the two girls there in an awkward silence. Usagi beckoned Hermione over to the book she'd been eyeing earlier.

Now, it was obvious Usagi couldn't understand a word of English when it was spoken to her, and didn't know enough anyway to get by in an English-speaking society. But that didn't mean she was entirely oblivious to the language. She used the few words that she knew to figure out what the book was for.

Hermione looked confused as to the reason she'd been brought over to the book section of the store. Usagi looked around to find what she needed to explain her point; she found it one the wall nearby. A calendar. She pointed to a date: October 10th.

"Naruto-kun… birsu-day," she said, trying one of the words she remembered from when she'd tried― and miserably failed― learning English several years earlier. It took a second, but Hermione realized what she meant.

"The tenth is Naruto's birthday?" She received a nod (and was that a blush on Usagi's face?). Usagi pointed to the book, then took the money out of her pocket to show that she didn't know how wizarding money worked.

Several minutes later, Usagi happily left the shop with the book (gift wrapped specially by the witch running the shop) in a bag by her side. She went to join a very confused Naruto clone.

Hermione was about to leave to meet Ron and Harry when she realized that she hadn't even looked at what that book that she'd bought for Usagi was. She went back over to look at it. Emblazoned in gold lettering on the books brown cover were the words:

_Witchipedia: the All-Knowing Guide to All Things Everywhere_

The smart witch instantly realized the value of such a book. She soon left the shop as well with a copy of her own in her bag (though this one was not gift-wrapped). She then met up with Harry and Ron as they were coming out of Honeyduke's. They were off to the Hog's Head Inn to proceed with the plan of their own.

* * *

1. This is a stupid little hidden joke, actually. Hermione's middle name was originally 'Jane', but JK Rowling changed it to 'Jean' for the final book. It was because she'd also made Umbridge have the middle name 'Jane'. And _nobody_ wants to share anything with Umbridge…

2. Potter Puppet Pals… couldn't resist.

Sections of this, as per usual, were taken from the book (namely, the conversation with Sirius, and a few parts later, too). Chapter 15.

Witchipedia… this stuff comes to me while a sleep. How this book works will be explained next chapter.

Review!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	12. New Recruits

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Sorry the chapter is kind of short.

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing _

**Kyuubi Speaking**

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **this chapter is surprisingly mild…

* * *

**Last Time: **_Hermione met up with Harry and Ron as they were coming out of Honeyduke's. They were off to the Hog's Head Inn to proceed with the plan of their own._

* * *

**Chapter 11: New Recruits**

The inside of the Hog's Head bar was dark and dingy; everything in sight was covered in a thick layer of dirt and grime that appeared to have been there for centuries at least. Sitting at a table in the center, surrounded on all sides by dodgy characters and what smelled suspiciously like goat, was a large group of Hogwarts students. Harry counted how many were there; including him, Ron, and Hermione, there were 30. Among the large group, there was Naruto, still disguised as a fifth year Hufflepuff, and Usagi, now looking like a Ravenclaw girl with a long blonde braid. It seems Hermione had neglected to tell the exchange student and guard about what they were planning, which didn't matter, since the two shinobi knew anyway.

"Hermione," Harry hissed, "I thought you said _a couple of people_!"

"The idea was very popular, Harry…"

They waited as Fred ordered butterbeers for everyone in the group and the drinks were passed out (in very dusty bottles the barman found somewhere under the bar). Hermione was about to speak, when a Hufflepuff boy who no one recognized― it was, of course, Naruto― raised his hand to get her attention. She nodded, indicating he could say something.

"Obviously we're here in this dirty bar because we're doing something secret, correct?" he said, a pleasant smile on his face. The barman looked a little put off by what he had said about the bar being dirty, but he could hardly protest. "So can you be sure everyone here is trustworthy?"

Everyone looked around at each other, as if trying to determine if anyone was suspicious. Naruto took that time to set up the same type of genjustu he had in the common room when Sirius appeared in the fire. To the other people in the bar, the group now appeared to just be talking about meaningless things.

"Well…" Hermione said slightly shakily, nervous to be in front of such a large group like this, "I sincerely hope everyone here can be trusted…"

"Just making sure," he said. It was quiet for a second. All eyes turned to Harry. Hermione began talking, trying to explain their intentions, but everyone's eyes kept flicking back to Harry.

"… and, um…" Hermione continued, "We aren't learning anything at all in Umbridge's class, so we have to take matters into our own hands. And by that, I mean more than just reading, more than just theories. Real defensive spells. We need to be properly trained in defense because… because," she paused, nervous, then took a deep breath and said "Because Lord Voldemort is back."

The standard reaction followed. Among the collection of shrieks and twitches, a Hufflepuff boy and a Ravenclaw girl remained motionless. Hermione noted this briefly. The attention turned back to Harry. Silence reigned for a few moments.

"Where's the proof he's back?" asked a sixth year Harry had seen on the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. He sounded rather aggressive in his question. Many of the other students felt inclined to agree, and voiced their opinions. Realization dawned on Harry. The real reason so many people had shown up for this meeting. They hadn't come to learn defense; they wanted to hear Harry's story.

"I saw him," growled Harry, "And if you don't believe me, I'm not going to waste my time trying to convince anyone of the truth." Harry looked angry, menacing almost. It was a touchy subject for him. No one spoke. "I don't want to talk about Cedric Diggory, okay? If that's what you're here for, then leave."

The outlook for Hermione's plan looked grim, until a question from Susan Bones about Harry's Patronus, and in turn his answer, convinced them otherwise. The group got into a discussion about all the things Harry had done so far.

The Philosopher's Stone(1)… the Chamber of Secrets… the Triwizard Tournament… Harry had done even more than Naruto had read about in his mission information. The blonde shinobi had thought this defense idea was nothing but a joke, but now he believed Harry would actually be able to teach these students something.

"So then…" Hermione said, confident again, "We'll have to find a way to meet. It should be about once a week, but I can't interfere with Quidditch… and we'll need a place to meet…"

"We'll find somewhere," said Harry, "And get a message to everyone when we do."

Hermione pulled a pieced of parchment and a quill from her bag. "Everyone should write their names down, just so we know who's here, and also as an agreement to not tell Umbridge or anyone else what we're doing." The parchment was passed around and everyone signed it. When it came to Usagi, she, who had only had a vague idea of what was going on until that point, pretended to write something down. She passed it to Naruto; he signed with a fake name that he'd randomly thought of. An odd feeling passed through the group. It was as though they had signed some sort of contract.

Naruto dispelled the genjustu as everyone got up to leave. Hermione carefully slipped the parchment back into her bag, beside her copy of _Witchipedia_. Both items would give a certain blonde haired teen quite a problem in the fairly near future…

* * *

The following Monday, the students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry awoke to find more bad news.

Educational Decree Number Twenty Four.

Posted on every bulletin board around the school was a large sign printed with bold black letters, proclaiming that all student organizations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs were disbanded. Unless, of course, those in the club gained the permission of the High Inquisitor. Namely, Umbridge.

This was no coincidence. Somehow, Umbridge knew. She may not have known exactly what it was they were planning to do, but she at least knew they were planning something. Hermione arrived and assured them, however, that it wasn't anyone who had gone to the meeting in the Hog's Head that had blabbed to Umbridge. She'd jinxed the parchment they'd signed, so that anyone who had told someone not on the list would pay direly.

Speaking of Hermione, for that matter…

She was practically pulling her hair out by that point. She still hadn't had a chance to use her 'all-knowing guide'. First, there was homework. It was never a problem for her to get her own homework done… but then there was the matter of her two best friends who were, admittedly, much less adept at time management than she was. So, of course, they wanted her help, which she did give occasionally. Then there was the matter of finding a suitable place for their extra defense lessons. So far, they ruled out the library, empty classrooms, Hogsmead, and the Forbidden Forest. So that left… not much. And then there was the small matter of sleeping… Hermione wished she had her time turner back to do just that.

And so the book lay hidden under her bed, along with the list she'd been making of things to look up in it. She supposed it was for the best…

To Harry's horror, Angelina, the Quidditch captain, revealed that Educational Decree Number Twenty Four also applied to Quidditch. Naruto, who had yet to even see this game played, sincerely hoped the sport wouldn't be cancelled entirely for the year.

In History of Magic that morning, Harry had discovered that Hedwig had been attacked. By what, he didn't know. And all for a simple message from Sirius: 'Today, same time, same place'.

In potions, there was an unexpected occurrence. Malfoy was being a git as usual, but he seemed to have said the wrong this time.

"… and my father says they've been looking for an excuse to sack Arthur Weasley for years…" the pale blonde boy said, "And as for Potter… My father says it's a matter of time before the Ministry has him carted off to St. Mungo's… apparently they've got a special ward for people whose brains have been addled by magic…" With that, the Slytherin made a horrible face, as if imitating someone from that ward.

The next thing everyone knew, Neville was launching himself at Malfoy. Harry ran forward to grab the round boy before he made it to Crabbe and Goyle, who were flexing their muscles menacingly; Naruto was between the opposing Slytherins and Gryffindors in an instant (or what seemed like an instant, anyway. He was actually moving incredibly slow for him). The impending fight was broken up, however, by the entrance of the hook-nosed potions master. Ten points were deducted from Gryffindor. Only Harry and Neville knew the real reason for Neville's anger.

That night, in the common room, Harry, Ron, Hermione gathered around the common room fireplace. Sirius appeared, and they began to speak about the gathering at the Hog's Head. Mundungus Fletcher, who had been there disguised as a witch in a long veil, had seen the students and reported it to the Order.

It was not ten minutes into their conversation when Sirius suddenly stopped talking. He turned around in the flames, and then was gone in an instant. A hand appeared among the flames, groping as though to catch hold of something; a stubby, short-fingered hand covered in ugly old fashioned rings. The three ran for it immediately.

Naruto's clone, once again disguised as a book, took his usual form and frowned at the spot where that hand had been seconds previous. This could be a problem…

* * *

Naruto was happy, for a time. Since receiving the invitation to join the ANBU ranks, he'd noticeably been in much better spirits. But now, he was falling back down again. That dreaded day was arriving soon.

Naruto hated his birthday. The reasons were obvious; he'd had nothing but awful memories of his birthday. Not to mention the fact that it was the anniversary of the day the Kyuubi attacked and both his parents died.

It was now October 8th, two days from his birthday. He hadn't told anyone about it. There really hadn't been any need, the way he saw it. He was willing to let the day just silently pass.

But his change in mood again had begun to attract the attention of the Hogwarts Trio. Hermione thought she knew the reason.

_It's his birthday soon, _she thought as they exited the Great Hall. _He's probabaly upset because no one is celebrating it..._

The real reason was just about the exact opposite.

Later that night, the newly reformed Gryffindor Quidditch team held their first practice. Rain was pouring down in buckets. The team had had little success with the practice.

In the changing room afterwards, Harry had felt a sharp pain in his scar. It was coupled with a strange burst of emotion. Anger. Impatience. He realized with a jolt that these were Voldemort's emotions, and that when his scar had hurt in Umbridge's office on his last day of detention, there was also an emotion with it. Happiness. But what did this mean? Harry told no one of his thoughts.

After days of searching for a suitable place to hold their defense meetings, an unsuspected source supplied them with an answer. Dobby knew of the perfect place, told Harry just how to get there…

* * *

At breakfast the following morning, an event occurred that was able to break the student of Hogwarts out of their usual early-morning stupor.

Normally, no announcements were given in the morning. Most people were still too asleep to pay attention and there wasn't ever any guarantee that everyone was there. It just so happened, however, that nearly everyone was present in the Great Hall that morning.

Dumbledore stood up, silencing the hall almost instantly, and was met with quite a few looks of confusion. Ignoring Umbridge's raised eyebrow, the old headmaster began to speak.

"I am please to announce," he began, "that, in addition to the school's guard and Naruto, the transfer student, Hogwarts will be joined by several more members of the Japanese wizarding community. Over the next few days, we will play host to several representatives from one of Japan's foremost wizarding schools…"

Until that point, Naruto had just been mopily (2) eating his breakfast― tomorrow was his birthday― but his ears perked up at the word 'representatives'. He looked up at the wizened old wizard; when two sets of blue eyes met, the older of the two's twinkled knowingly.

"…they should be arriving very shortly… ah! Here's one of them now."

The large doors of the great hall opened slowly, and a short-ish figure entered. Upon the sight of him, Naruto nearly choked on the food that was in his mouth. He managed to swallow it down, and then was up in an instant. The blonde boy ran towards the entrance of the hall, a single worded shout escaping his lips:

"Gaara!"

* * *

Yay! Gaara's here!

1. I hate that they changed it from the Philosopher's Stone to the Sorcerer's Stone for the American version. I mean… what the hell was wrong with the original?! I'm staying true to what J.K. Rowling originally wrote. So there.

2. Mopily is a word, because I say it is.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	13. Dumbledore's Army

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Two things I should clarify… first, Gaara really is just going to be a friend. There's no pairing between them. Second, Gaara isn't going to be sorted into one of the houses, because he's not there as a student. His cover is that he's there to check out the school. It'll all be explained in this chapter.

I need to make this note at the beginning of the chapter. In case you don't know, the names of the villages I use translate as follows:

Konohagakure― Hidden Leaf

Sunagakure― Hidden Sand

Otogakure― Hidden Sound

Iwagakure― Hidden Rocks

Kumogakure― Hidden Cloud

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing _

**Kyuubi Speaking**

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **the author is crazy... oh, right the story. Um… not much, surprisingly.

* * *

**Last Time: **_The blonde boy ran towards the entrance of the hall, a single worded shout escaping his lips: "Gaara!"_

* * *

**Chapter 12: Dumbledore's Army**

Screw being undercover. Naruto missed his fellow jinchuuriki friend. And _technically _he wasn't an ANBU yet, so if something genuinely made him happy, he was still allowed to show emotion, for the most part.

His ever-stoic friend remained so as Naruto approached him. The blonde boy stopped in front of him with a genuine smile.

"_I didn't think I'd be seeing you for a while," _Naruto said by way of greeting. To the untrained eye, Gaara appeared to have not changed his expression once since arriving. Naruto, though, could see the faint shadow of a smile on his red-haired friend's lips. Even if it was barely visible, it was there nonetheless.

"_You should probably pay attention to the Headmaster…" _Gaara replied flatly. Naruto turned back around to face the hall.

"Sorry, Professor," he apologized with a slight bow, and then ran back to his seat, smile still in place. Gaara slowly walked forward to the front of the hall, settling near the staff table.

"Quite alright," Dumbledore said with a slight chuckle, "Well, as Mr. Uzumaki so loudly proclaimed, this is Gaara Sabakuno." Said teen nodded slightly, his arms crossed defiantly in front of him, sweeping cold black-rimmed eyes around the hall. "I must admit," Dumbledore chuckled again, his blue eyes sparkling slightly, "I expected the headmaster of a wizarding school to be a little… older."

Whispers erupted all over the hall. From what Naruto picked up, everyone was saying things along the lines of:

"Is he serious?"

"That _kid_ is a headmaster?"

"Why doesn't he have eyebrows?"

"I knew the old man was batty!"

"…he scares me… make him stop staring over here…"

Naruto smiled slightly again. _So that's his cover… well, it makes sense, considering he's the Kazekage, and my story is that Tsunade, the Hokage, is the headmaster of my "former school"._

"You'd be surprised," said Gaara, surprising Naruto with his use of the English language, "how far you can get with a little skill."

"Indeed… now, would you care to explain to the Hogwarts population what your presence here is for?"

"Well," began Gaara, "Having a transfer student here― that would be Naruto, who, yes, I have met before―" he gave a small eye roll, "seems to have been a success so far. In the future, I'd like to possibly set up an exchange program between students of my school and Hogwarts. But I want to check out this school myself first…"

Naruto looked over at Umbridge. Her eyes were bulging even more from her pouchy skin than usual, making her look even more like a bloated toad. She was eyeing Gaara with such a look of disapproval, Naruto was sure that, had her annoyance been directed at anyone else, they would have crumbled by then. But this is Gaara we're talking about.

"My two assistants will be arriving later today," Gaara concluded, stepping away from the staff table and joining Naruto at the Gryffindors' table. It earned a few looks.

"I didn't know you can speak English," said the blonde-haired ninja.

"It's one of the many near-useless things my father's advisors wanted me to learn," Gaara explained, "I also know Latin and the history of five-card poker." Naruto laughed a little, then switched the conversation back to their native language.

"_So you're the representative to present me with my new rank?"_

"_Technically, no. I'm not from Konoha. I volunteered to go with the actual representatives both because I can speak English, but also for another reason as well…"_

"_Another reason other than being the Kazekage?"_

"_Well that's part of it. I also came to ask for the help of the wizarding world. He looks old and feeble, but I've heard that Dumbledore-san is very powerful."_

"_I don't think you'll be able to find much help here, since the wizarding world is on the brink of a large war. But why did you need help anyway?"_

"_For the same reason you've just stated. The shinobi world is on the brink of a major war as well."_

"_Really?" _All trace of humor that had been in the boy's voice was instantly gone. The others around him took notice. Usagi moved a little closer to the conversation.

"_Orochimaru is dead. The collapse of Sound has caused a vacuum of power that incited chaos. A few shinobi from Kumo wanted to assert their power, and so they assassinated a member of the high council from Iwa, blatantly going against the treaty between those two countries. To make matters worse, Kumo has refused to renounce the actions of these shinobi. Konoha is allied with Iwa and was expected to help, but your village has already been stretched as of late trying to regain what is left of Rice Country after Otogakure disappeared from within its borders. It was requested that Suna help, since we are now allied with Konoha, but my village has been on bad terms with Iwa since the Third Shinobi War. A Fourth War seems imminent."_

Naruto furrowed his brow, but said nothing yet.

"_If you ask me," _Gaara continued, "_Konoha has too many alliances for its own good."_

"_Some are old," _Naruto contributed, "_And would cause a rift if Konoha were to break them. Others are new and took years to establish. If those were to be negated, the results could be catastrophic. Tsunade is really in a fix here."_

"_Do you still want to be the Hokage?"_

Naruto smiled sadly, but again said nothing on the subject.

"_Shouldn't you be back in Suna, though?" _he asked instead. "_Your village needs you."_

"_Despite our alliances, I've tried to keep Suna as neutral as possible. Like I said, though, I'm not the actual representative. I'm here more for diplomatic reasons. Even if we do not gain their help in the war, the wizards can at least help with this; we recently discovered that a fairly large number of missing nin have escaped the hidden continent. Though those trained in the ninja arts are much more powerful than wizards, a small army of exceptionally strong wizards or witches may be able to take a few of them down, or capture a few for questioning. Actually, I've found records from some of the previous shinobi wars. It turns out; there was a large war in the Wizarding world that coincides with the Second Great Shinobi War. Wizards and shinobi had aided each other before, but all those who remembered it in our world are dead. I doubt anyone from the Wizarding World is still alive either." _(1)

The two friends lapsed into a momentary silence. People didn't live long where they came from. Getting help again would be difficult. Naruto decided to change the subject, and switched back to English.

"So who―and where― are the others?" he asked.

"They'll be here soon," said Gaara simply, standing up. "I need to go speak with Dumbledore-san."

* * *

Later that day, as the Gryffindors were walking down the sloping school grounds to attend their Care of Magical Creatures class with the Slytherins, Hermione questioned Naruto about the events that had taken place at the morning's breakfast.

"You obviously knew that other headmaster… where did you meet him?" she asked, a tinge of suspicion evident in her voice.

"At a competition my school hosted a few years ago," Naruto replied almost truthfully, thinking back to the Chunin exams, "I guess you could say it was like the Triwizard Tournament, only a lot more people competed from each school. About 120 people to start with, in teams of three… anyway, Gaara wasn't the headmaster of his school yet, and I met him while competing with my team." (2)

"So who won the competition?" asked Ron. Naruto stopped walking for a second, pausing to think of what to say.

"We… never really finished," he said quietly. He was glad he was going to officially be an ANBU very soon; he wasn't sure how much longer he could remain a genin.

"Well… then what was that conversation you had this morning about?" Hermione inquired as they began walking again. "You looked pretty concerned…"

Naruto sighed, figuring he could explain things very vaguely without giving too much away. After all, the best lies have basis in the truth.

"My country is very close to war," he explained, "A man similar to― though less powerful than― Voldemort recently tried to take over." He ignored Ron's slight twitch at the name. "He failed, though, and now there's chaos."

"Oh," said Hermione in a small voice. No more was spoken on the subject.

* * *

Throughout the day, Naruto wondered who the two representatives were going to be. At dinner that evening, he got his answer.

Harry, Ron and Hermione had already passed around the word that the first meeting that Harry would be teaching would be held that night in the Room of Requirement, and they had told everyone just how to get there. Hermione had taken every precaution she could think of to ensure that no one uninvited― namely, Naruto― found out about it. To the blonde shinobi, however, their plan was incredibly transparent.

At the table, while eating the nightly feast, the three were exchanging secretive glances as they carried on conversations with Naruto, making sure they let nothing slip. Not that it mattered, anyway.

Gaara sat up at the staff table, silent, and barely touching the food in front of him. His pale green eyes glanced over at Naruto, whose bright blue eyes looked back at him questioningly. The red-haired teen nodded slightly.

Towards the end of the meal, the door to the Great Hall opened again. This time, two people entered, and walked down in between the tables to the front of the hall, towards Gaara. Naruto had a slight coughing fit at the sight of them, but stayed in his seat this time.

One of the two people had dark black hair and skin so white, he was paler than Draco… paler than Gaara… paler than even Sasuke… His dark eyes were squinted into slits as an odd smile was placed on his features. _Sai._

The other of the two had sparkling green eyes that nearly put Harry's to shame. That was not her most noticeable feature, however. What everyone in the hall was currently staring at was the violently cotton-candy pink shade of her short and stylish hair. Her slight smile was pleasant. _Sakura._

They did not look at him as they passed, though Naruto could see from her expression that Sakura really wanted to.

When they reached the front, Sakura said something to Gaara, who then turned and said something to Dumbledore, who then stood up and again called for attention.

"These two people are Gaara's assistants, whom I mentioned earlier. Their names are Sai"―the indicated teen gave a small, two-fingered wave―"and Sakura." ―the pinkette gave a tiny bow to the students― "You will most likely see them around school for the next few days, so please make them feel welcome." With that, he sat back down and the noise that had been filling the Great Hall before the entrance of the two shinobi began yet again.

About ten minutes later, Gaara stood and Sakura and Sai followed him out of the large doors. While still talking with Ron and Harry about how much of an annoyance going to Snape's and Umbridge's classes, Naruto made a hand sign under the table. He'd recently been exploring all of the possibilities of the kage bunshin. He found that, if he focused, he could create a clone that appeared not by his side, but at a set location somewhere nearby. Currently, the farthest he could create a clone from was 200 feet.

The three visiting ninja waited outside the door, hoping Naruto had gotten the hint to join them. A few seconds later, the clone appeared before them in a puff of smoke.

"_Listen_," he said in a quiet voice, speaking quickly, "_I've already made one mistake today in showing that I know Gaara, and I had to cover up for it. I can't be seen talking to any of you."_ Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but he continued, "_Dinner is nearly over, so we have to be quick. I need you to meet me later tonight. Usagi-san will come find you, then I'll send you a message via the communication scroll that she has."_

"_Naruto, are you―" _Sakura began. The clone held up his hand and gave a sad smile, dissipating just before the doors to the Great Hall opened again. Students poured out, walking past the Hogwarts visitors. Sakura was smiling and giving polite nods to people who passed, all the while looking for that bright patch of brilliantly blonde hair. She spotted it for a second, before the sea of students swallowed it back up, and Naruto was lost in the crowd.

* * *

"Do you know Sakura or Sai?" asked Hermione, closing the book she had been taking notes from and placing it on the end table beside her.

"No," replied Naruto, not looking up from the essay he was writing. "They look familiar, but I've never met them before." Hermione waited a while before asking anything else.

"So… do you know where Usagi is?"

"Oh, probably roaming the halls, I'd say." Somewhat satisfied, Hermione didn't ask anything else.

Soon, the Hogwarts three began to leave the common room, citing the need for a last-minute trip to the library. Naruto allowed them to leave without asking any questions.

The three walked through the halls sneakily, as if they were going to be caught and expelled at any moment. Fifth years were allowed out of their dorms until nine o'clock, but it never hurt to take precautions. Harry paused, and pointed at the aged piece of parchment in his hand with is wand, tapping it and mumbling its password under his breath. A map appeared on the blank surface, showing tiny labeled dots where various people were.

"Filch is on the second floor," said Harry, reading it, "And Mrs. Norris is on the fourth."

"What about Umbridge?" asked Ron nervously.

"In her office."

"What about Naruto and Usagi? And those visitors?" asked Hermione. He shot her a glance, wondering why she was always so suspicious of them.

"Well, I can't tell exactly," he said after searching for a while. "There are a few names that are in Japanese. But if I had to guess, I'd say he's still in the common room, and she's down on the first floor, moving around slowly. The three visitors are… oh, they're on the third floor, probably in their rooms."

Reassured, the three of them took off to the seventh floor corridor and stood in front of the blank wall that Dobby had instructed them to go to. As instructed, they passed the wall three times, concentrating on what they needed. A door appeared. Looking slightly wary, they opened it and went inside.

It was perfect. Literally everything they could think of needing for learning defense was there, ranging from Sneakoscopes to old leather-bound books to fluffy cushions. They sat down on the cushions and waited for the others to arrive.

Back in the Gryffindor common room, Naruto was starting to set his seemingly complicated, yet fairly simple plan in motion. He took out the communication scroll and wrote a short message to Usagi, telling her to find Gaara, Sakura, and Sai. He then created a clone that appeared in the hallway in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady and, without so much as a puff of smoke, seamlessly used kawarimi to switch with the clone. No one in the common room saw anything but Naruto continuing his work on a long essay.

He quickly made it to the seventh floor corridor and spotted the door across form the large tapestry depicting Barnabas the Barmy being clubbed by several trolls. He watched Luna Lovegood enter and quickly slipped in behind her, looking like the Hufflepuff boy again.

By eight, all of the cushions were filled and Harry began to nervously explain about the room. Then came the first order of business and the most important one as well, according to Hermione at least.

"We need a name…" she said, "But it has to be something that won't let anyone know what we're up to."

"How about the Defense Association?" said Cho, "Or the D.A. for short."

"The D.A. is good," said Ginny, "But let's make it stand for Dumbledore's Army, because that's what the Ministry is most afraid of."

It was official. Hermione pinned the paper with their names on it to the wall, writing DUMBLEDORE'S ARMY across it in bold letters. Naruto, in disguise, took that momentary to scribble something down quickly on the scroll.

_Fifty minutes. Seventh floor corridor, across from the large troll tapestry. Don't be seen. Knock first. _

He joined in with the rest of the students in Dumbledore's army as they practiced the Disarming Charm. There sure were a lot of messy spellwork going around…

Harry, after what seemed like only a short time, realized that it was already after nine. Everyone in the room had to get back to their dorms or risk being caught out of bed. To avoid attracting attention, people left in groups of twos and threes. Soon, only Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, the mysterious Hufflepuff boy, and the Twins were left. The Weasley siblings, save Ron, were about to leave when there was a knock at the door that seemed to echo the room. Everyone froze and looked around at each other fearfully. Had they been caught already?

Harry gulped, and was about to open the door when Hermione stopped him. She pointed to the Marauder's Map, which was hanging out slightly from the pocket of Harry's jeans. He nodded, and pulled the old parchment out, opening it up to look at their current position on the seventh floor to see who it was outside the door. The Room of Requirement had seemingly appeared on the map out of nowhere, containing handful tiny dots with names beside them.

"It's those visitors… well; I can assume it is, anyway. The names are in Japanese symbols." He handed the map to Hermione so she could take a look.

"There's four people there…" she said, "Do you think the guard or Naruto is with them?" Then one particular dot caught her eye. There was another Japanese name nearby―and it was there with them in the room. "…no way…" she mumbled, sweeping her gaze around at the other students. She looked back at the map. Based on the position of the dot, it must be…

She walked over to the innocent- yet unfamiliar-looking Hufflepuff boy and looked him straight in the eye.

"N-Naruto?" she asked warily. His face had a look of confusion at first, but it cleared and turned into a slight smile.

"Guess you got me, Hermione," he stated simply, to the shock of everyone in the room. The was a puff of smoke from which Naruto, in his real form, stepped out and crossed to the door. He unlocked the door and opened it before anyone could break out of the shock to protest.

Gaara entered first, followed by Sai, then Sakura, and lastly by Usagi, who closed the door behind her. Gaara's eyes swept around the room; a nonexistent eyebrow rose at the titles of the books the room had provided.

"What… what's going on?" asked Harry, unsure of whether to trust the newcomers or be on the defensive. He gripped his wand tighter, just in case.

"Relax Harry," Naruto said in a reassuring voice, "They aren't going to attack you. They're my friends. And speaking of which…" He turned to Sakura, "_You relax, too, Sakura… it's okay if they know."_ She visibly de-stiffened with a sigh of relief, and then ran forward to hug her friend.

"_Naruto_!" she yelled, throwing her arms around his neck. She was crying a little.

Sai, ever the non-socialite, saw the cushions spread out on the floor and immediately went over to lie down on them in a―mildly provocative― way that no male ever should. He was resting on his side with one hand under his chin and the other resting on one of his knees, which was bent, leaving the other one pointed. Naruto, breaking apart from Sakura and noticing this action and thanked whatever god there was that Sai wasn't still wearing his usual midriff-bearing outfit.

"There is no way you're straight…" Naruto mumbled in English, shaking his head exasperatedly. An oblivious Sai just squinted up at the rest of the people in the room amicably. Gaara remained with his arms crossed by the door, face blank of emotion.

"Mind telling us what is going on?!" Ron yelled angrily, fed up with the lack of explanation.

"_We all miss you,"_ said Sakura, ignoring the gibberish-sounding outburst from the ginger-haired boy. "_Especially Tsunade-sama. Um… how are you?"_ It was obvious to all of the Japanese-speakers in the room that she was tiptoeing around a sensitive subject.

"_I'm doing fine… but I'll talk with you more later," _Naruto laughed a little, "_I think I should explain things before everyone- especially Hermione- explodes from lack of knowledge."_

Upon hearing her name, Hermione's glare deepened.

"You said you didn't know them," said Harry, "but you greeted each other like friends…"

"How did you get in here?" asked Hermione. "And how were you disguised like that? And why―"

"Hermione, you ask too many questions…" said Naruto.

"Well, what are you?" asked Ginny, "A spy? Someone sent by You-Know-Who?"

"Neither."

"Are you actually going to answer any of our questions?" asked Hermione.

"Of course I am."

"When?"

"Now."

* * *

…just kidding! You have to wait. Ah, the secrets are beginning to come unraveled…

I just want to make sure no one get this wrong: this is NOT a NaruSaku pairing. They're just friends, as they should be. Jokes about Sai's sexuality aside, I suppose I'll go with common opinion and make this not have any yaoi... or I could hint things... :P

1. I obviously made all of this alliance stuff up. I'm not sure if they are cannonly or even geographically accurate, but it'll work either way, so it doesn't matter.

2. Seriously, the parallels between the series are numerous. And freaky.

Questions? Comments? Leave a review!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	14. The Calm Before the Storm

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing _

**Kyuubi Speaking**

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **the chapter title says it all.

* * *

**Last Time (The evil cliffhanger): **

"Are you actually going to answer any of our questions?" asked Hermione.

"Of course I am."

"When?"

"Now."

* * *

**Chapter 13: The Calm Before the Storm**

"Okay," said Naruto, addressing the students in the room. "It's pretty much obvious that, from the first day I got here that you haven't trusted me. Well, Hermione mostly…"

They were now all sitting on the cushions that the room had supplied. Hermione was still looking warily at Naruto. Harry and Ron were clutching their wands behind them as they sat, just in case. Ginny was sitting close to Fred and George who, for once, weren't talking or thinking about pulling any pranks. Luna sat crossleggedly nearby, a look of serenity on her face, as if she wasn't aware that anything out of the ordinary was going on. Sakura sat beside Naruto, slightly annoyed at Sai, who was still lounging in his provocative manner, but now scribbling in a sketch book. Gaara was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed and his eyes closed; it looked like he was sleeping, but Naruto knew better. Usagi was off to the side, nearly blending into the shadows with the hood of her cloak over her head, as it always was.

"You haven't given us reason to trust you," Hermione stated.

"Have I given you any reason not to?" he asked in retort. "Other than following you here tonight, that is…"

"Well…" Hermione reasoned, "It's only been a few small things really. But, I mostly don't trust you because… well, no offense, but Dumbledore hired Usagi only, so he trusts her. But you just came along as a translator."

"True, I guess…" Naruto mumbled, still mulling over exactly how much he was going to tell them. It was an audience of Gryffindors who knew already how to keep the secret of the Order of the Phoenix, plus one Ravenclaw girl who had already been deemed crazy and would not be believed if she ever spilled Naruto's secrets.

"Hermione's kind of right," said Harry, "Naruto, you could easily be a spy."

"And he's seen the inside of the Order!" exclaimed Ron. Ginny jabbed him in the ribs and glanced pointedly at Luna, who wasn't supposed to know anything about the Order of the Phoenix. "Whoops…" Luna sat unfazed by the bit of information.

"Dumbledore is no fool," Naruto laughed a little, "Do you really think he would have allowed that arrangement if he thought I was a spy?"

A few uncomfortable glances went around the room.

"But you've shown with how you disguised yourself earlier that you're good at fooling people," said Hermione.

"You could attack us any time! Any of you visitors could…" Harry's hand was growing slightly numb with how tightly he was gripping his wand. Naruto hesitated, looking for a way to explain things in a way that would get them to stop being so stupid.

"Stop being so stupid, all of you," commanded Gaara bluntly, breaking out of his would-be sleep and crossing over to stand near Naruto. "If any of us really wanted to attack you, you'd be dead by now." A freezing silence ensnared the Hogwarts students.

"Uh, Gaara…" said Naruto after a while, "That may have bee a little harsh." Gaara stared down at him passively.

"You guys aren't wizards, are you?" asked Luna, speaking for the first time. Naruto exchanged a glance with Gaara; his red-haired friend looked at him as if to ask 'are you going to tell them _everything_?'.

"I've been wondering about that, too," said Hermione. "I mean, we've seen Usagi apparate, and she did something to the lock on the bathroom door at Gr― Gri―" She hesitated, finding herself unable to say the rest of the word; the spell placed on the headquarters wouldn't allow her to say its name. "Oh, you know where. But never anything else. I don't think she even has a wand."

"Well," began Naruto, "No, we aren't wizards, but we're something similar. Where we're from, people are trained… differently."

"Different… how?"

"We don't use wands, to start with. Instead, we use handseals to channel our ch― magic." He demonstrated, showing the basic position for a Henge. "That's how I changed my appearance earlier. And our magic has vastly different uses compared with yours."

"How?" asked Fred.

"It's more practical," supplied Gaara. "We use it for combat. Pure combat."

"Well, that's not entirely true…" corrected Naruto, "Just look at Sakura; she's a healer."

"And when does one usually need a healer?" asked Gaara with a slight smirk.

"… after combat…" answered Naruto quietly. He saw the looks he was being given. "Don't look so scared. It's like Gaara said, really. If we wanted to attack you, then we would have. And why would I attack the person I'm supposed to help protect?"

Harry's eyes widened at the confession. "…What?" he asked, already getting angry.

"Dumbledore didn't hire Usagi to protect Hogwarts, Harry. She was hired to protect _you_. We both were, actually. She's guarding you through large-scale protection of the school. And while, yes, I am a translator for her, I am also operating under her as a guard who is closer to the charge. "

Harry's fists clenched, and he shot up to an aggressive standing position. "Does Dumbledore think I need a babysitter or something?"

"Would you calm down?" said Naruto exasperatedly, also standing.

"I'm mature enough to―"

"Oh, right," Naruto cut him off sarcastically, "You're no where _near_ mature."

"How can you say that? I'm the same age as you are!"

"Physically maybe… that has nothing to do with―"

"I know how to take care of myself! I've seen enough of the world to―"

"You think you've seen the horrors of the world, Harry, but you haven't. How many people have you seen die, Harry?" Naruto's voice was now very low, sounding almost like a growl. "One? A Couple?" Harry's eyes were wide, but he didn't answer. "Sure, you've had a tough life compared some people you know… but you whine and complain and get angry over seeing _one _person get killed. That's a joke where I come from… come back to me when you've seen hundreds."

Slightly afraid, Harry sat back down on his cushion.

"But at least you somewhat understand the threat," Naruto continued, "If all I've heard about Voldemort is true, then that scenario isn't unlikely. The Wizarding World is on the verge of war. You, all of you, are going to see a lot more people you know― people you _love_― die."

It was silent for a second, as the ominous words hung in the air.

"And you call _me_ harsh," Gaara mumbled, as Naruto exasperatedly ran a hand down his face.

"Look," he said, slightly annoyed, "Whatever Dumbledore's reasons are, I'm not about to go against orders. So I'm here to help protect you."

"Like a bodyguard?" asked George.

"Yeah, I guess. But one of those letters I got recently mentioned that several rogues from where I come from are somewhere around in this area. Now that I think of it, they may even be working with Voldemort. If that's the case, this just got a whole lot more dangerous."

"What do you suppose we do about that?" asked Hermione grimly.

"_You_ do nothing. None of you stand a chance against them. But, in general, I like what you've been doing so far. The D.A. is a good idea… at least not all the Hogwarts students will be totally helpless. And," he said, finally smiling a little again, "It doesn't hurt that it's in rebellion against Umbridge."

Harry nodded. He and Naruto had shared those awful detentions; there was no way either of them was going to just roll over and do whatever she said.

Naruto glanced down at his watch. It was getting late… and he'd already told them more than enough.

"That's enough for tonight," he said, "If you don't get back to the dorms soon, you might get caught. And who knows what'll happen then."

"But you haven't really answered all of our questions…" said Hermione.

"I will… eventually," Naruto replied vaguely.

The students left, in staggered groups again. Ginny and Luna were the first to go. Since they weren't in the same house, they would have to make a portion of the trip alone, but at least they were smart enough not to get caught. After them, Sai shocked the remaining wizards― and witch― by disappearing in a puff of smoke. Offered no explanation, Fred and George left, utilizing one of their well-known shortcuts back to Gryffindor tower. Gaara nodded shortly, and was gone instantly in a swirl of sand (Hermione looked like she was going to explode again, but Naruto chose not to explain).

The three Gryffindors departed, huddling under the invisibility cloak and watching the map closely. They made it across the school in what seemed like record time.

As the three of them approached the common room, they noticed something. There was no one left in the common room, save for one person. That person had Japanese symbols where the name would normally be… and hadn't they seen those same symbols somewhere before?

They gave the Fat Lady the password and entered, all surprised to find Naruto there in the common room, reading in one of the soft red chairs by the fireplace. Hearing them come in, he turned to face him.

"Oh," he said, "You're back. Did you have a nice time?"

The three exchanged glances. Before they had a chance to ask how he'd gotten there so quickly, a puff of smoke erupted beside his chair, revealing the familiar rabbit-masked ANBU. She pulled a metallic object, that none of the Gryffindors could clearly see, from somewhere beneath her cloak.

"_Naruto-kun is coming back," _she said.

"_Okay, throw. _See you in a second," he said cryptically to the three. A second later, he was gone in another puff of smoke as he was hit in the chest; the book he had been reading fell to the floor and closed with a small snap.

"Oyasuminasai (1)," said Usagi quietly, collecting the shuriken and ascending the stairs to the dorm room she shared with the fifth year Gryffindor boys. The Hogwarts Trio simply stared.

Back in the room of requirement, Naruto gave a twitch that interrupted the conversation he'd been having with Sakura. He blinked a few times, processing the information the clone had absorbed. Studying with clones was great― it saved him a lot of time― but he wished the clone would at least _warn_ him before reading almost an entire book in one night.

"_Sorry," _he said after a few seconds. "_Continue._"

"_Right…_ _well, like I said, there was so much going on tonight, we didn't want to do the ceremony. It's short, really, but it would be better to do it after we've settled in a little bit."_

"_Yeah, I get it. So when were you thinking…?"_

"_Tomorrow," _Sakura said.

"…_Tomorrow?" _he asked quietly.

"_Tomorrow," _she repeated slightly more firm this time. Then, nodding to say goodnight, she made a hand seal and disappeared with the soft sound of teleportation.

"_Tomorrow…"_ Naruto repeated (2). His quiet voice echoed around the empty Room of Requirement, then faded at the sound of another teleportation. The room, vacated of all life, faded into oblivion.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx At Malfoy Manor xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sasuke awoke as early as he did every morning. Today was different, though.

It was October 10th; the anniversary of the Kyuubi attack. And, he remembered with a slight, bemused smirk, his blonde 'best friend' 's birthday. He wondered, vaguely, if the leaf Genin still considered him his closest friend…

Leaving the room he shared with the other members of Hebi― save Karin, who was kept separate to prevent her from jumping him in the night like a rabid dog― he cleared such thoughts from his mind as he prepared for his daily meditation.

It was getting tedious, really. He had to keep the order of his mind perfect. He couldn't afford any mistakes around the Dark Lord. To avoid any slip-ups by his less-than-intelligent teammates, he had chosen to not tell them anything. As far as they knew, they were really helping this Voldemort guy in his rise to power. Sasuke was the only person that knew the true intentions behind helping the dark wizard.

The truth was, he was getting kind of fed up with his new master's ways. He formulated his plans in the same way that Orochimaru had; they were long, convoluted plots that promised little outcome and, in Sasuke's opinion, were destined to fail. If he really hated this "Harry Potter" kid so much, why didn't he just send the Uchiha to go assassinate the student? He doubted the teen would put up much of a fight…

No, instead Voldemort wanted him to go 'intimidate' his arch enemy a little. As if scaring him during a sporting event would have much of an impact…

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Back at Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was early. Naruto did not awake that morning because… well, he'd never gone to sleep in the first place. He stared up at the canopy of his four-poster bed, as he often did for a few minutes before he got up. Today was different, though…

It was October 10th; his birthday. And, more importantly, the anniversary of the Kyuubi attack. Too many bad memories of this day had made him unable to sleep last night. And he could feel how strong his connection with the Kyuubi was that day… that could be a problem.

Naruto sat up in bed and crossed his legs, resting his hands on his knees and then closed his eyes. He desperately needed to clear his mind.

_Kyuubi…_ he thought into the darkness, getting the demon's attention.

**What is it?**

_Obviously the connection between us is a lot stronger today. I need you to… to not interfere at all today. I have to keep my emotions in check. Do you get what I'm saying?_

**Yeah, whatever, kid. Wake me if you want anything.**

Naruto could then feel the connection wane a little, coupled with the odd feeling that he knew meant the Great Fox Demon was asleep. And snoring slightly…

The blonde shinobi blocked out all thoughts, memories, and emotions, immersing himself in the sweet blankness of meditation. He'd casted a sticking charm to the curtains that were closed around his bed, as well as a reverse silencing charm, so he wouldn't be able to hear anything outside the perimeter of the curtains.

All outside and internal influences blocked, Naruto allowed himself to become entirely blank. If he could help it, he was going to treat this as just another day.

* * *

Usagi exited her tent as early as she did every morning. Today was different, though.

It was October 10th; the anniversary of the Kyuubi attack. And, more importantly, Naruto's birthday. She was worried about what his mental state would be like that day.

She looked through he slits in her mask at the five beds that occupied the room. The boys had yet to rise. Harry was tossing in his sleep, but she'd gotten up early many times before that day and seen that happen, so accepted it as a fairly normal occurrence. But something _was_ slightly off… since when did Naruto completely close the curtains around his four-poster bed? He usually left it open a little, so he was never caught off guard.

She called to him, quietly, so as to not wake the others. He didn't answer. Maybe he was still asleep? His chakra signature was still there, so he couldn't have left…

The ANBU crossed over to her companion's bed and called to him again. No response. She waited… After a while, she tried to pull the curtains back, and found that they wouldn't budge, and she couldn't see in to find out why Naruto wasn't answering.

He couldn't still be asleep… she knew he was trained to wake at the slightest disturbance. Was something wrong? She waited again…

Soon, the other Gryffindor boys began to emerge from under their covers. They looked questioningly at Usagi, who was sitting on the window sill. She pointed to the closed curtains around Naruto's bed. Harry groggily got up and went over to Naruto's bed.

"Hey, Naruto," he said with a yawn, "I think Usagi wants you…" When there was no response, Harry just shrugged. Maybe Naruto felt like sleeping in? He reached out to pull the curtains back, and found them stuck with a charm of some sort. Now it was getting weird…

Eventually, it was only Harry, Ron, and Usagi left waiting. Neville and Seamus had already gone down for breakfast; Ron's stomach was loudly urging him to do the same. But now Harry was curious. Did this have anything to do with the stuff he'd told them last night?

Inside the curtains, Naruto's watch beeped, pulling him out of his state of nothingness; he'd forgotten to take it off (3). It was 7:00; breakfast ended in thirty minutes and classes began. He grabbed his wand from where he kept it under his pillow and cancelled the sticking charm on the curtains.

Naruto emerged from the bed, fully dressed, to find two surprised faces and one masked one, looking at him curiously.

"We're going to miss breakfast," he said simply, walking past the three of them out of the dorm room. Ron gladly left down the dorm stairs, ready to get some food. Harry was right behind him.

Usagi sighed, and followed the three out the door.

* * *

Naruto was distant for the rest of the day. During classes, he quietly did his work. At lunch, he didn't speak and barely ate. Sakura, from the place she'd temporarily been given at the staff table, noticed this every time she stole glances at her blonde friend. Sai had noticed that Naruto was behaving… well, more like _him_ before he joined team Kakashi; he was blank, emotionless. Gaara was the only one who could accurately understand what Naruto was feeling. He knew to leave him alone.

Naruto rose and left the Great Hall wordlessly, apparently on his way early to their next class.

"What's with him?" asked Ron, "He's been like that all day."

"I dunno…" replied Harry "Could it have something to do with what he told us last night?"

"Well how could it?" asked Hermione, "I mean, sure he told us more about him, but―" She stopped suddenly, as if realizing something. "Oh no… what's today's date?"

"The tenth, I think," said Harry. "Why?"

"I can't believe I forgot… Today is Naruto's birthday!"

"Are you serious?" asked Ron as they stood, also setting off to their next class. "Who acts like that on their birthday?"

"Well… he's probably upset that no one is celebrating," Hermione supplied, pushing open the doors to the school so they could go outside to get to the Herbology greenhouse.

"Then why doesn't he just tell people it's his birthday?" asked Harry

"I don't know," replied Hermione, slightly annoyed. "But we should do something at least…"

"So now you like him?"

"It's not a question of liking him, Ron… I mean, I still don't trust him entirely, but at least now we know that Dumbledore does…"

"Then what do you think we should do?" asked Harry.

"Well… we could have a small party or something," she proposed, "A surprise party, in the Room of Requirement. We could invite a couple of people and do it tonight."

"That's a bad idea," a voice to the left of them stated. It was Gaara; a few grains of sand swirled around his feet.

"Why?" inquired Hermione. Gaara shrugged and walked past them.

"What does it matter? You aren't going to listen."

"That guy seriously scares me…" shuddered Ron when Gaara was out of sight. "But are we still doing it?"

Hermione thought for a second, and then nodded. "Yeah, I don't see why not…"

* * *

"_Naruto,"_ said Sakura quietly, when passing him in the halls, "_Meet us in the same room as we were in last night. We'll do the ceremony."_

"_Got it,"_ he replied, walking on as if they'd only greeted each other with little interest.

* * *

"Fred, George," said Hermione to the twins as she passed them in the halls, "Meet us in the Room of Requirement tonight. But don't tell anyone else. It's Naruto's birthday, and we want it to be a surprise"

"Got it," they replied in unison, and both parties continued on thier way.

* * *

It was all arranged. They'd meet in the Room of Requirement at 7:30 that night. Despite Hermione's protest about House Elf rights, Dobby would be bringing some food for them to snack on. They'd told Naruto they were having another meeting of the D.A. and he'd promised to meet them there at 8 o'clock.

What they didn't know, was that Naruto had already arranged something of his own. Or rather, Sakura had. At _7 o'clock _that night, all five of the visiting shinobi would have a meeting of their own in the Room of Requirement. It was the only place close by where they could meet without being found or interrupted. Or, so they thought…

Naruto was there first. When he entered the room, he found that it had been transformed into something similar to a Japanese-style room with rice paper dividers and tatami mats lining the floor. He moved to the middle of the room and sat on one of the cushions the room had provided, sighing. He'd avoided everyone the entire day, staying as distant as he could manage. But now… now he'd have to see everyone, first during the ANBU promotion ceremony, and then in the D.A. meeting that Harry and his friends had decided to have tonight. In the latter of the two, he'd have to act cheerful and oblivious, something he wasn't sure he could handle today.

A few minutes later, Sakura arrived with Sai in tow. He was in basic ANBU uniform, minus the mask and cloak. Both were holding bundles in their arms. Gaara arrived soon after, followed shortly by Usagi. They all joined him on the cushions.

"_Because this isn't like usual," _Sakura began, "_It won't take very long. As a student and assistant to Tsunade-sama, I will be representing the Hokage tonight. Sai, as a high-up member of the ANBU forces, will be representing the leader of the ANBU, under the Hokage. Gaara and Usagi-san are witnesses." _Naruto nodded, knowing of the formalities used in this situation. Sakura unwrapped the bundle before her, revealing the ANBU uniform.

Many minutes and equipment presentations later, Naruto had his entire uniform, including the armor and sword. All that was left was his mask and tattoo, the traditional symbols of belonging to Konoha's elite force.

"_The mask comes last," _said Sakura, beginning to charge some chakra into her hand,_ "Now, this might hurt a little, but the tattoo is actually made with chakra. Like a branding, essentially. Our chakra pathways are going to be nearly touching for this, so once I start I can't stop and you can't move, or it may cause damage to both of our chakra systems."_

Naruto nodded. Actually, he doubted that he would get hurt if something were to happen, but he knew that Sakura would, so he didn't want to risk it. He pulled his sleeve back, revealing his upper arm and shoulder. The henge that hid his scars was still in place, but he was still feeling incredibly self conscious about his arm.

Sakura placed her hand, which was glowing bluish with chakra, against his bicep, and Naruto could admit that it did sting a little. It was like when his skin burned from exposure to the Kyuubi's chakra, only to a much lesser extent, as Sakura's chakra could never be considered anywhere near demonic.

A short while into the tattooing process, the door to the Room of Requirement began to open. Unable to move from his current position, Naruto wasn't able to jump up and stop it from opening.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared in shock at the scene before them as they entered. This wasn't the room they had been thinking of… and just what was going on?

"Wh-what is this…?" asked Hermione, eyes wide. Naruto, being careful not to move his body at all, turned his head the slightest bit so he could look at the three Gryffindors a little better.

"Didn't you say eight?" he asked flatly.

"Yeah, but…" Hermione had no response. It was silent for a few moments.

"_Done,"_ said Sakura, pulling her hand away. The styled swirling-leaf design of the ANBU remained on his arm, no longer stinging. Naruto stretched his arms and then stood up.

"Why are you here so early for the D.A. meeting?" he asked.

"Well, that's the thing," said Harry, "Hermione told us it was your birthday, so―" he stopped mid-sentence at the look on the blonde teen's face.

It was a look of wide-eyed shock crossed the blonde boy's features for the briefest of seconds, before it turned into a slight show of anger.

"How did you know that?" he asked. "I haven't told anyone."

"Well," replied Hermione, "Back in Hogsmeade, when I met you and Usagi in that store, she wanted me to help buy you a present. She told me― well, in her own way― that October 10th is your birthday."

Naruto recalled the incident through his clone's memory. But it begged the question: why did Usagi care enough to get him a present in the first place? He turned to her. She had stood upon arrival of the three students.

"_Usagi-san…why would you get me anything?"_

Knowing from the look on his face what he was talking about, she responded, "_I wanted to do something nice for you." _From behind her back, she pulled out the book she'd gotten for him and, almost sheepishly, held it out. His expression softened a little at the sight of it. He took it, eyebrows raising slightly at the title and the implications it held.

There was a small gasp of realization from Hermione. She reached into the bag at her side and pulled out her own copy of _Witchipedia_.

"I've been carry this around with me for days!" she confessed. "I can't believe I forgot about it…"

Sighing, Naruto put the book down on a low nearby table. "_Still… I don't like to celebrate today."_

"_Naruto,"_ Sakura cut in as softly as possible, "_We all understand that. But this is a nice gesture, so you should accept it. To tell the truth, I got you something as well." _From the bundle in front of her, she removed a stack of scrolls. "_They're object-sealing scrolls,"_ she explained, "_You can seal and carry more weapons and equipment…"_

Sai, with his odd smile still in place, pulled out a very realistic painting he'd made of Naruto standing atop the Hokage monument. For once, he was free of all insulting remarks.

"Um, well," said Hermione quietly, amidst the gift-giving, "I didn't really trust you before, so I didn't get you anything or tell Harry or Ron about today being your birthday. But now we wanted to do something, so we were going to surprise you here…"

"Which I said was a bad idea," stated Gaara. Naruto was a little surprised, since the red-haired teen had barely said anything since they gotten there. Gaara fixed him with a look that said it all; he knew what this day was like for Naruto, and why he didn't want people to know about it. Naruto looked down at his feet for a moment.

_Maybe…_ he thought, _maybe things can be different here. Hermione, Harry, and Ron don't know about the Kyuubi, and now that they trust me, they care enough to try to do something for me on my birthday. I've never gotten anything that wasn't akin to a beating on my birthday before… then again, not even Sakura knew when my birthday is. I guess… I can accept this, for today._

He lifted his head again; a slight smile graced his lips; it was real. Sakura breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, standing up with the rest of the bundle.

"_I'm glad, Naruto. But we have one last thing to give you." _He nodded, and she unfolded the fabric in her arms. A fox face stared up at him, and his breath caught in his throat for half a second. The white mask was very detailed and decorated in shades of red and black. On each cheek of the mask were three long red lines, just the whisker marks on his face. Taking the mask into his hands, he looked slightly questioningly at his pink haired friend.

"_This is really detailed… Usagi-san's mask doesn't have this many designs on it, and neither do those of most ANBU I've seen."_

"_I can explain that," _said Usagi, stepping forward. "_As of today, you officially outrank me."_

Naruto was surprised by that. He thought he'd be starting as just a standard ANBU shinobi, perhaps a little lower than his rabbit-masked teammate.

"_You aren't a captain," _Sakura explained, "_But you are a slightly higher-up agent than most. The more detailed the mask, the higher the rank."_

He nodded in response, still looking over the mask. The reasons for the chosen animal were obvious. There was the Kyuubi, plus his additional fox-like characteristics. And knowing Tsunade, it was also a form of tough-love, making him face what he as afraid of; being seen as the demon fox. Naruto knew a lot about masks― he'd used one for most of his life. They hid the wearer's identity, but often reflected some aspects of that person's personality. With this mask, know one would know who he was. Yet, at the same time, they'd know exactly.

"Okay," Ron's voice cut into his thoughts, "What the bloody hell is going on?"

Until that point, the three Hogwarts students had been lost in a sea of unfamiliar words. Under the new wave of questions rolling in about what was going on, why he was getting a tattoo, what was with the mask, etc., Naruto selectively answered.

"These are the symbols of a special guard corps from my hometown," he answered, being only specific enough to pacify their need for information, "Usagi is a part of it, and I've just been initiated."

"So… you're like, a guard now?" asked Harry.

"Yes, but I'll still be acting as a student here for the rest of the year."

At least somewhat satisfied for once, Hermione decided to change the subject.

"Well, it's not much of a surprise anymore," she prompted him, "But are you ready to celebrate your birthday?"

After a brief pause, he nodded.

"Yeah," he said with a smile, "I'm ready."

* * *

1. I don't know how well know this one is… it means good night, as in before bed.

2. Tooooo-morrow! Tomorrow! I love ya', tomorrow! You're only a day a― -boottothehead- Okay. I'm done.

3. Requires some suspension of disbelief. First that Naruto is even wearing a watch, and second that it's digital. I haven't forgotten about the 'no-technology' at Hogwarts thing… but I'm ignoring it for the sake of the watch. Analog watches don't beep.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	15. Of Masks

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

All I have to say is that, while Hermione can go overboard in her know-it all-ness, she is still one of my favorite characters. So even though she's been kind of antagonistic lately, it's definitely not character bashing, or whatever. Character bashing is so stupid, it's just one of those things that doesn't fly in my book. So there will never be any actual character bashing (or overly stupid things done to any characters) in my stories, no matter my feelings for any fictional character (meaning Umbridge. Naruto tearing her limb from limb solves nothing, despite how much I really want it to. _Really_ want it to).

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing _

**Kyuubi speaking (in Naruto's head)**

"**Kyuubi speaking through Naruto" (this chapter only)**(…dun dun DUN!)

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **angst by the buckets. That's why last chapter was the calm before the storm. Oh, and mild language, 'cause I feel like it. Psh! Like that should scare you… Sai, however, should.

* * *

**Last Time:**

"Well, it's not much of a surprise anymore, but are you ready to celebrate your birthday?" she prompted him.

After a brief pause, he nodded.

"Yeah," he said, "I'm ready."

* * *

**Chapter 14: Of Masks**

He'd never been given a present. He'd never celebrated the day. He'd never been with anyone who cared to do either.

Until that night.

Naruto looked around the room in a brief moment of calm, surprised that he'd actually been having fun. Dobby, the strange little house elf, had brought up lots of food from the kitchen, as the room was unable to provide things like food. Ron seemed to be in a competition― with no one in particular― to see who could eat the most. Almost an entire cake and about a gallon of butterbeer later, he was still going strong. Harry was also by the food, but was not stuffing his face quite as feverishly as Ron was (though stuffing his face nonetheless). Gaara sat near Sai. Neither was talking, and they appeared to be having a staring contest of some kind (despite Sai's eyes being squinted upwards with his usual smile). Hermione was chatting with Ginny as Sakura sat with them and pretended to listen. Usagi sat nearby silently; Naruto laughed a little bit. _I suppose girl talk is the same in any language…_

It was a small party overall, but it was the most anyone had ever done for him. For that, he was grateful.

He turned back to the twins, who were standing in front of him. They were smiling identical smiles, making him a little bit wary (1).

"Our latest, greatest creation―"

"The Blabbery Blow Pop―"

"It took months to perfect―"

"I think we've got it now―"

"But we need a test subject."

Naruto blinked, still wondering how the twins finished each other's sentences so smoothly. He looked suspiciously down at the lollipop they'd placed in his hand. '_Weasley's Wizard Wheezes'_ was printed on the orange wrapper in shining gold lettering.

"What exactly does it do?" asked Naruto slowly. He knew the effects―and side effects― of some of the other 'products' the twins supplied.

"It lets you speak and understand―"

"Whatever language you first hear―"

"While it's in your mouth―"

"Only problem is―"

"You can't understand your usual one."

A little apprehensively, Naruto unwrapped the candy and held it before his face. His nose could detect no poison; he placed it in his mouth, knowing he would detect anything harmful right away. It tasted oddly like mint, and tingled slightly in his mouth.

"Well?" asked Fred (though perhaps it was George).

"I don't think anything happened…" he garbled through the lollipop. "Gaara, say something in Japanese."

"_This is stupid," _replied the Kazekage without missing a beat.

"It didn't work." He had understood Gaara perfectly (though it wouldn't have been hard to figure out what he had said). "Maybe it's because I already speak two languages?" Naruto said thoughtfully after removing the sweet.

"Maybe… But then we'll need another test subject―"

"Who speaks one language―"

"Preferably not English…"

Naruto nodded, knowing what they were hinting at. Gaara was out of the group of potential subjects. Usagi was, as well, as she'd have to remove her mask. That left Sai and Sakura. And on the off chance the lollipop did have some adverse effect, a medic nin would be handy to have nearby…

"Sai," Naruto called to the ashen teen, who wandered over from his spot near a pissed-off looking Kazekage.

George-or-Fred handed him another wrapped confection. Sai had read in a book somewhere that, when someone offers you something, you should accept it, and so he took it without hesitation.

"Okay, now say something," Naruto said once only the stick was visible in Sai's mouth. After pausing for a moment, he responded.

"I bet this lollipop is bigger than your penis," he stated simply, showing hardly any surprise that he was speaking a different language than usual. It was, of course, at that moment that Gaara decided to join the group of boys. Upon hearing Sai's remark, the former Jinchuuriki stared at the dark haired teen beside him, blinking as if trying to determine if he was serious or not. Fred and George were staring at him as well, both with looks that were a mixture of disbelief and amusement. "Although," Sai continued, "We can always find out..."

Dear god. Was that a _wink_?

"Figures," Naruto mumbled, smacking a palm to his forehead. He reached forward to yank the sweet out of his pale teammate's mouth, but not before Sai was able to make one last comment.

"Are you jealous of it being in my mouth?"

At that, the twins began laughing hysterically.

"I'm sure there's a story behind that―"

"You'll have to tell us some day."

"There's no story," Naruto assured them, laughing a little himself, "Sai's just _really_ perverted…"

Usagi and Sakura walked away from Hermione and Ginny to see what the commotion on the other side of the room was about. Hermione, seeing this as her chance, picked up her copy of _Witchipedia_, which was left innocently on the floor beside her. Ginny raised an eyebrow, but knew what Hermione was intending to do, having played a small part in Hermione's 'investigation' thus far.

"You still don't trust them?" she asked in a whisper so quiet she barely heard it herself.

"Well… I do a bit more, but I just want to find a few things out."

Hermione took a quill out from her bag and opened the cover of the leather-bound book. On the first page, written in fancy-scripted letters, were the instructions '_Write your query below'_, followed by an empty square. She dipped her quill in some ink and wrote '_ANBU_' in the square. The words faded into the page.

The encyclopedia immediately began to hum and pulsate in her hands. When it stopped, words bloomed across the page in spidery black writing. Ginny leaned over to look at the page, and the two girls began to read the entry.

_ANBU_

_Short for Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai (translation: assassination tactics and special forces squad)._

Hermione's breath caught when she read the word 'assassination' and she looked at Ginny.

"Hermione," whispered the red-haired girl, "Assassination… you don't think… Harry…"

They shared a concerned look for a moment more, before continuing to read.

_An elite force of shinobi from Konohagakure (the Village Hidden in the Leaves), located on the Hidden Continent. They are specially trained in the methods of assassination, torture…_

The two girls continued to read the description of the ANBU skills until they came to the bottom of the page. Hermione flipped to the next one, coming to a picture of an ANBU mask that stared up at them from the left hand side. Information about ANBU equipment was scrawled on the right. Hermione skipped the next few pages for the moment, finding the article stopped several pages in. At the end, there was a list of other terms related to her initial search, followed by a list of other resources where information on the subject could be found.

_See also: Hidden Continent, Konoha, shinobi, Black Ops._

Hermione decided to try the first suggestion. She closed the book, and then opened it again to find that the pages were once again blank. She tried searching for 'Hidden Continent'…

By that point, Ron and Harry had finished stuffing their faces and had noticed the two Gryffindor girls and the concerned looks they were giving the book in Hermione's lap, and went to see what the problem was. The room had become oddly separated. With the exception of Fred and George, all of the British teens were on one side, while the Japanese visitors were on the other.

Marveling at the new information about a continent hidden from the rest of the world hundreds of years previous, Hermione flipped through the many pages of information that came up with the search to the list of suggested terms while explaining to Ron and Harry what they'd found do far. Finding Konoha among the suggestions, she decided to try that as the other three around her looked on.

A lot of information came up on the subject, but most of it was useless statistics about population and birthrate. One entry, however, caught her eye. Soon after information about Konoha's fourth leader, there was a reference to a large-scale attack on Konoha, citing dates exactly fifteen years previous.

…_the Fourth died in the battle against the Kyuubi no Kitsune (see: Nine-Tailed Fox) on the night of October 10, 1979 (2) while sealing the soul of the demon into a newborn child…_

"Hey," said Harry thoughtfully, "This is Naruto's fifteenth birthday, right? So… isn't that the day he was born?"

Immediately intrigued by this, Hermione searched for information about the Nine-Tailed Fox. It resulted in information about a behemoth that was described as the most powerful of the tailed beasts, creating tsunamis and flattening mountains with one swipe of its many tails. The next group of pages was dedicated to information about the attack on Konoha, which Hermione partially skimmed over. Then, she came to the end of the article and looked to the suggestions. There, opposite a full-page moving image of a giant fox trampling a forest as it growled at people on the ground below, were the suggestions, written in that same, spidery black ink.

_See also: Tailed Beasts, Jinchuuriki, Yondaime (Namikaze Minato)…_

The group of young wizards and witches froze when they saw the final entry.

…_Uzumaki Naruto._

* * *

Sai ended up with a nice shiny bump on top of his head after Gaara took the liberty of translating his comment to Sakura. Chuckling a little under his breath, Naruto walked away from the group to throw both lollipops away in a waste basket that had appeared on the other side of the room. After doing so, he turned to look at the four Gryffindors who were looking fearfully down at a book that Hermione was holding. As if feeling his questioning gaze, they looked up at him.

His heart nearly stopped for a second, all humor instantly gone.

Those looks.

So familiar…

They were exactly like the ones he was used to receiving back home.

Hate…

Fear…

Anger.

And to see those looks directed at him from his the people he'd thought to be his new friends… it was just too much.

He moved forward to them, watching as their looks followed him. As she looked up at him thoroughly scared, he snatched the book out of Hermione's hands and stared down at the pages before him.

The others in the room were aware of a sudden tense silence. Seeing that Naruto was frozen staring at the image on the page before him, Ginny and Hermione stood up and Harry and Ron straightened out from their crouched over positions. Sensing that something was wrong, the group on the other side of the room turned to look. Sharing a few looks, they began to move across the floor to find out what was wrong.

Before they got there, there was a loud thud as Naruto dropped the heavy encyclopedia. He was feeling an intense pressure on his ribcage that was making it hard for him to breathe. What happened to all the air in the room?

"_Naruto, what is it?" _asked Sakura, immediately concerned at his behavior. Naruto backed up a few steps away from the picture of the Kyuubi still growling up at him, his mind reeling.

_It's exactly the same… _he thought, _I don't know why I thought it would be any different. As soon as they find out about the Kyuubi, they start hating me. It's always been that way…_

Ignoring everyone else in the room, Naruto crossed to the door. He paused with his hand on the doorknob, looking over at his new ANBU mask, which rested on a table beside the door, along with the other things he'd received.

_That fucking mask… Like it will change anything! It's just like my personality mask… no matter how much it 'covers', my real face is always right there behind it, just hiding from the world. Well, masks never seem to work, now, do they? They break eventually and all you see is the ugly truth beneath. It's the same here as it was before… the secret always comes out eventually._

**Calm down, kid, **the Kyuubi contributed after being silent for most of the day, **they don't know the whole story. Just go back and explain it. **

_They're all afraid of me now. They think I'm you._

**Yeah, yeah, we get it. I'm fearsome. **

_I've had enough. I can't stay in this room any longer. I can't do this anymore._

With that thought, he pulled the door open and disappeared into the hallway. Usagi was at the door immediately, but by the time she looked out, he was nowhere in sight.

* * *

The room at the top of the astronomy tower was locked; not a problem for Naruto, though. Once unlocked, he pulled the door open, ran inside, and then shut it firmly behind him. With his back against the door, he slid down to a sitting position.

The feeling that was crushing Naruto's chest had yet to go away. He clutched at his shoulders, crossing his arms over his chest and trying to steady his breathing. His breath was coming out in short gasps as if the gulps of air he was taking in were not enough to fill his lungs. He was squeezing his eyes shut so hard it was making him shake as the sound of his heartbeat pounded in his ears.

He was trying to tell himself that he was being irrational. Somewhere deep in the back of his mind, the Kyuubi was telling― growling at― him the same thing. But another part of him just couldn't grasp that.

He reached a shaky hand down to the weapons pouch that was, as always, strapped to his leg disguised as a bag for school supplies. From it, he drew out a sharp kunai. It glinted in the small amount of moonlight that was coming from a window in the door opposite him that led to the astronomy platform. He stared down at it for a few seconds.

He suddenly realized why he got almost nothing from cutting with a kunai, or any other ninja tool for that matter. It felt like just any other wound― something he would get out on a mission; a battle scar. But the scars that resulted from his own personal battle felt different… sharper.

Naruto was then partially grateful for his knowledge of spells. With the other hand, he pulled his wand from where it hung in one of the belt loops of his jeans. He tapped it once to the weapon in his hand; the metal twisted and transformed like molten steel until it became a familiar form. With a razor blade now in hand, he pulled back the sleeve of his left arm, and cancelled the henge behind it.

Scars.

Too many scars to count.

Each one was a reminder of the past… of things he'd done to relieve his pain.

A physical pain in exchange for an internal one.

He could still feel it.

Naruto ignored the Kyuubi's growls and pressed the blade to his arm, near the crook of his elbow. He hissed at the first breakthrough of skin, once again feeling something he hadn't since months previous (notwithstanding Umbridge's ploy to punish him). As blood began to dribble out a few seconds later, he pressed the sharp tool to his skin again, repeating this several more times.

Pain-killing endorphins rushed through his system, calming his unsteady breathing. But he didn't stop cutting.

He couldn't stop.

He'd opened that door again, going down a path he'd been striving to erase for months. Now that he'd had a small taste, it was all too hard to resist.

The blonde teen worked in no particular pattern, creating a lattice of lacerations that crossed and intertwined, bleeding profusely. In the dim light, he could see the dark liquid dripping onto the floor and his clothing.

He couldn't stop…

* * *

The Room of Requirement was filled with a jumble of angry and worried Japanese words, in which the Hogwarts students were lost. And more than half of them (the angry half) were directed in their direction.

After Usagi had come back in, in near panic that Naruto had disappeared in an impossible school that literally changed from hour to hour, Sakura had gone to the four scared-looking Gryffindors to try to find out what had happened. What she found was a full-page moving drawing of the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. What the Gryffindors found was that Sakura was just not quite as pretty when she was angry enough to tear someone's head off. Which she didn't do, thank Merlin.

"_Well, we have to find him!" _Sakura was yelling, near hysteria. "_These idiotic kids have no idea what they've done!"_

"_Well,"_said Gaara, "_Despite their stupidity, we'll still need their help to find him."_

"_He's right…" _added Usagi quietly, joining them. "_This castle is huge, and all the chakra in its walls is interfering with his chakra signature."_

Nodding in agreement, Gaara turned to the confused Hogwarts students.

"You're helping us," he stated. It sounded a bit like an order, and, at the look in his eyes, those he was addressing were not about to go against it.

"What's going on, though?" asked Fred.

"Yeah," continued George. "He just left―"

"What could be―"

"So wrong with that? It's not like―"

"He's going to get hurt or anything."

The Kazekage glared for a few more seconds before answering.

"That's exactly what will happen. And regardless of why, all of you are going to help us find him."

After a brief moment of silence, Hermione spoke.

"But he's… he's a― a demon…" she said tentatively. Gaara's coal-rimmed eyes flashed in her direction dangerously. "I mean…" she continued, trying to show her reasoning, "Demons are evil, right?"

Before anyone realized what was happening, a bag that was hanging at Gaara's side burst open and a stream of sand whipped forward towards the brainy girl, wrapping around her head so that it covered only her mouth. She was pulled forward forcefully until she was only a few inches away from the angry shinobi's face.

"Oi!" yelled Ron, wide-eyed, "What the bloody hell are you doing?"

"_Gaara!" _Sakura gasped, afraid he might snap the poor girl's neck. Sure, she was angry enough at the students to do something similar… but it didn't mean she was actually going to!

"You," growled the red-haired sand manipulator, "Have no idea what it's like for him. He'd not a demon… his body is just imprisoning the soul of one. If there's anyone who is the exact opposite of evil, it's him. To be called a demon… you have _no _idea what that's like." The sand retracted back into the bag and Gaara's expression went back to look as though nothing had happened. "There are more important things than this." Weakly, Hermione nodded, stepping backwards to stand near Harry and Ron. "Now, this castle is huge. Usagi-san has been here for a while and knows her way around, but it will be almost impossible to search the whole school. Is there any faster way?"

"Well…" said Harry slowly, "We could use the Marauder's Map…" Gaara's eyes moved to look at the Boy-Who-Lived questioningly. Harry pulled the folded parchment out of his pocket, as well as his wand, and spoke the words that revealed the map's secrets. He spread the map out on the floor to get a better look at everything and scanned the map for any sign of Japanese characters. He found four sets of them in the room beside him, which he ignored as he scanned over the rest of the map. Finally he found it; Naruto was up in the astronomy tower. "Found him… I'll bring you there."

* * *

Naruto's shaky fingers dropped the blade. He didn't bother trying to pick it up again.

**You need help, kid.**

"_Shut up…" _Naruto whispered aloud. He was unaware of the door a few feet behind him beginning to open.

**I'm going to heal you. Stop suppressing my chakra.**

"_No… I don't want you to." _His eyelids were shut tightly, tears threatening to spill out from behind them.

**You don't seem to understand that this will **_**kill**_** you. And if you die―**

"_Shut up! …just… shut up…"_

* * *

How they got to the astronomy tower so quickly, Harry didn't know. He, Ron, and Hermione had been running to catch up with the pace that Gaara, Sakura, Sai, and Usagi wanted to go at. Their speed seemed like a miracle― for that matter, so did the fact that the group hadn't been caught, despite it being past curfew. They were a large group, even with Ginny and the twins having opted to stay back in the Room of Requirement.

When they came to the door to the room at the top of the astronomy tower, it was, as expected, locked. But the map revealed that Naruto was still inside, and so Hermione drew out her wand and pointed it at the knob.

"_Alohomora_," she casted. Currently, she was trying to get back on Gaara's good side― or at least get off his bad. The door opened with a click and the group peered inside. The light was dim, with only a bit of moonlight to reveal Naruto hunched over on the floor, his backed turned to them. He was already in the middle of speaking.

"_No… I don't want you to," _he said quietly. At first, the three students thought he was speaking to the Japanese-speakers beside them, but one glance at the looks Sakura and Gaara were displaying, as well as the absence of a smile on Sai's face said otherwise. Who was he talking to, then? A few seconds later he spoke again. This time though, he was shouting. "_Shut up!" _he yelled, but then quieted down when he continued, "…_just… shut up…" _It was then that they became aware of the shaking in his voice, as if he were soon going to cry.

Confused as to what was happening, Hermione cast the _lumos_ charm to shed some light into the room. Ron followed suit soon after, and as did Harry once he'd put away the map.

Light flooded into the room; still, Naruto did not turn around. His the shinobi crowded into the room surrounding him, and Sakura let out a small gasp at the sight of his bloodied arm, which now rested on his leg. He was staring down at his lap, not looking up at them. Sakura crouched down beside him and tried to get him to respond.

"_Naruto," _she said softly. He didn't look up still, though he seemed to be aware of their presence. Inside his mind, the Kyuubi was still speaking.

**I guess there's no reasoning with you. And I can't say I'm sorry if this hurts you, kid.**

Before he had a chance to ask what the Kyuubi was talking about, he felt a burning sensation that began at the top of the back of his neck, and moved all the way down his spine. At this feeling, he let out a small cry of pain, and then slumped over to the side, unconscious. As his mind slipped into the blissful calm of absolute blackness, the world that existed in the room around his body was the exact opposite of calm.

"_Naruto!" _Sakura cried. Being the medic nin she was, she needed to lay him in a way that allowed her to get a better look at his wounded arm. As she straightened him out from the curled up position he was in, the Golden Trio joined them in the room, completely speechless as to what was happening. As Sakura began to inspect him arm, trying to see the damage done through the still spilling blood, everyone in the room suddenly felt a stifling pressure. The Trio had no idea what it was, but the others could guess right away. Their suspicions were confirmed a few seconds later as red tendrils of chakra began to swirl slightly around Naruto's body. Unable to stay close to the evil-feeling chakra, Sakura stood up and backed away a few steps.

Naruto's body― like a reanimated corpse― lifted itself to its feet. His arms hung limply at his side and his shoulders sagged forward slightly. He opened his eyes…

Red irises swept over the occupants of the room as the backed into a line near the door. "Naruto" cracked his neck and stretched his back a little.

"**And this," **said a growling voice,** "Is why I never want a human body."**

Surprise rang throughout the room. Those that knew what was happening were shocked that the Kyuubi was apparently speaking through Naruto. The usually English-only speakers were surprised that they could understand what he was saying, though the others all obviously did as well. Harry was thinking that, perhaps, it was like what happened when he spoke in parseltongue and didn't know it; it just sounded like English then.

"**Now, it's either very fortunate or very unfortunate that this happened tonight, depending on your standpoint." **He smirked slightly; it looked out of place on Naruto's face. **"Before you ask, I put the kid into forced unconsciousness."** He paused. Facing no protests, he continued. **"Because this is the anniversary of my―" **he growled a little** "―**_**sealing**_**, the connection between us is especially strong. This is the only time I can do this.**

"**You humans… he's done nothing to you. If anything, he's helped you; he keeps you from me." **A feral grin now occupied Naruto's face, showing off elongated canine teeth and manic slit-pupil eyes. **"Humans are weak. And since he is one, he can only take so much torment before he snaps and turns to… well, this. But I'm telling you now: if you don't stop this soon, he'll eventually kill himself. Whether it's an accident or on purpose remains to be seen."**

They were shaken by what he was implying.

"**Don't get me wrong… I want nothing more than to kill this brat and get revenge on his goddamn fath― eh, never mind that. If he dies, then I die as well. Listen; he's strong physically, but his mind is fragile. And when it comes down to it, it's the mind that determines the strength of the whole."**

The words seemed to echo around the room for a minute. Then Usagi stepped forward, glad that her mask could hide the fear she knew to be written all over her face.

"_Then… you can heal him now, right?" _she asked quietly. The Kyuubi looked down at Naruto's arm which, as it was hanging loosely down by his side, was dripping blood down onto the stone floor.

"**Ch, right… I would, but the brat is suppressing my chakra, even when unconscious. I'll admit, he's good at that. Some shit about not wanting to depend on me for anything… I'd force my way through the block, but that would probably destroy half this castle, along with this body anyway. And that wouldn't do any good, now, would it? No, this is all I can do at the moment. You, girl." **He faced Sakura. **"You're a medic nin. You fix him."**

Sakura nodded and stepped forward again, finding the dark chakra was withdrawing.

"**Just remember,**" the Kyuubi continued, **"His body can heal a thousand times over. But it's his mind that needs to heal the most."**

At these words, the demonic red eyes closed and Naruto's body fell forward limply. Sakura caught him before he hit the ground and laid him down gently. Blue chakra began to glow between her hands and she held them over his bleeding arm, trying to help the skin repair itself. She worked for a while, ignoring the unspilled tears that blurred her vision slightly.

_He needs to heal…_

* * *

They placed him in his bed in the boy's dormitory. It was late― so late it was early, actually― but, as shinobi, their movements were silent and neither of the two other boys sleeping in the room awoke to find them there.

Downstairs in the common room, three Gryffindors sat in a deserted common room, staring at the flames in the fireplace with blank expressions. Ron looked pale, his skin now a shade of grayish white that rivaled Draco Malfoy's. Hermione had tear tracks left on her face as she thought about how she'd contributed to what Naruto had done to himself. Harry was trying to process all of this new information coming in, and having a hard time doing to so.

Such an awful turn of events that caused a night that began with a party to end in this manner.

Back upstairs, Naruto opened his eyes groggily to find Gaara and his teammates, including Usagi, surrounding his four-poster bed in the dormitory. He blinked a few times and raised his left arm in front of his face, taking in the sight of the white bandages that covered his entire forearm. He dropped it down by his side again.

"_Please…don't tell Baa-chan," _he said weakly.

Sakura looked down at him, shocked by his words.

"_Naruto, I have to… she'll want to know―"_

"_Please."_As he said this, there was a pleading look in his eyes, to which she couldn't respond. Reluctantly, she nodded; at that, he seemed to smile, even if it was only the slightest bit. She smiled as well, gave a small wave, and was gone in a puff of smoke. Sai placed down the presents Naruto had received down by the side of the bed and disappeared as well a few seconds later. With one last knowing look of shared understanding, Gaara was gone in a whirl of sand. Naruto closed his eyes and fell back asleep almost instantly.

Usagi looked down at him for a few seconds, before pulling the curtains around the bed partially closed and moving into the solitude of her tent. She was really worried about him, but wasn't sure what she could do about it.

Now that Naruto was an ANBU as well, however, she was allowed to show him who she was. The question was… when?

* * *

Sakura, Sai, and Gaara left the following Wednesday. If they were to stay any longer, it would arouse suspicion from those residing in Hogwarts― namely, Umbridge. For the days after his birthday that the three of them were there, Naruto had avoided and ignored them as much as possible.

He was quiet in classes and, though no one else knew the reason for the sudden change, Harry, Ron, and Hermione then knew, and didn't push the issue. Fred, George, and Ginny had been told some vague answer to their questions about what had happened. Truthfully, the Golden Trio wasn't exactly sure how to explain it to them.

Even before Naruto had gone to Hermione on Sunday asking her to―please― not use _Witchipedia _to look any further into his life, she'd already sworn to herself that she wouldn't look anything up concerning him without asking first. Later that night, Hermione had burned the long list of things she'd been planning to look up to solve the mystery that had been Naruto.

The next DA meeting, which took place on the 23 of October, with Halloween fast approaching, Harry had an idea for what to do. The previous week, they'd done some more practice with the _expelliarmus _charm (plus some explaining as to why Naruto and the school's guard were present), but the next week, he wanted to do something else. He'd gotten the idea from one of the most memorable lessons that Professor Lupin had taught while at Hogwarts. But he was going to expand on it.

The DA members entered the Room of Requirement to find almost nothing there. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting on the cushions that the room always provided, Usagi was near the door, and Naruto was lounging on a large trunk, which rattled every so often, as if trying― unsuccessfully― to toss him off. When everyone arrived, Harry stood up to speak.

"Umm, okay," he started, "Well, the fifth years that are here pretty much already did this with Professor Lupin, but I think it's really important. When he was showing us the boggart, he wasn't just doing it to teach us the _riddikulus _charm. He wanted us to face our fears, because it's the best way for us to not be afraid of them anymore."

Ron paled, remembering the incident in their second year with the giant spiders in the Forbidden Forest. As if to emphasize Harry's point, the chest rattled again, but Naruto, who was still firmly in place on top of it, held it shut.

"Now," Harry continued, "I'm not going to make you do this if you don't want to." Ron let out a small sigh of relief. "But I think it would help if we weren't afraid of our fears anymore… or at least, not as much. It'll help us be more brave."

"You Gryffindors and your bravery…" scoffed Zacharias Smith from the back. Hermione glared at him a little.

"Well what about you, Naruto," said Angelina, addressing the blonde boy, "What do you think of this?"

The others in the DA had seen the change in Naruto. Nearly two weeks had passed since the incident, and he was finally starting to relax again, at least a little. He didn't fall into his idiot mask, again, though, but he was still friendly and occasionally "graced" them with a small joke or a smile. He didn't talk much, but when he did― in their meetings, mostly― people saw how intelligent he actually was. He had a large knowledge of spells (large enough to make people wonder just what they taught at his old school) and helped give advice during the meetings. It was odd… he was the same age as them― younger than most, actually― yet he seemed so much older at times. As such, both as an effort to include him and also to find out what he had to say, they often asked for his advice.

"Me?" he asked sitting up from his spot on the chest, "I think it's a great idea. What better way to learn defense than facing what we fear?" This was met with some approval, but it was obvious that most were still doubtful and apprehensive. _Though, _thought Naruto as an afterthought, _I'll admit I'm curious to see what they're afraid of._ As he thought this, the chest gave another shake.

"So, uh, any volunteers?" asked Harry. Needless to say, no one responded.

"Why don't you do it?" came a voice from the back. Zacharias Smith sure was getting annoying…

"Well…" said Harry, not really wishing to do this.

"Your fear, Harry," said Cho inquisitively, "It isn't… You-Know-Who, is it?" He could feel everyone's eyes on him.

"No," he answered truthfully, "It isn't, actually. It's… dementors."

"But you know how to face those, right?" asked Susan Bones.

"Yeah… but that's kind of the point of what we're doing now… I mean, it's not like we can ever get rid of our fears entirely. But knowing how to fight our fears will make things easier." His statement was met with a few seconds of silence, before Zacharias spoke again.

"I'll do it if you go first."

Sighing, Harry pulled out his wand and turned to face the chest. Taking that as his cue, Naruto stepped away from it and allowed the lid to open. From the darkness inside, the even darker spectral form of a dementor rose out into the room, heading towards Harry. All of those present in the room could feel the familiar sense of cold dread that accompanied dementors, though it wasn't as intense as the real ones. Harry waited a few seconds, focusing on a happy memory to repel the figure.

"_Expecto Patronum!" _he yelled, producing the majestic stag that had saved his life several times now. The boggart, scared by the pure form, retreated back to the chest, and the silvery stag dissipated. Leaning on the lid, Harry said, "To tell the truth… I'm not really too sure of a way to make a dementor funny."

In the brief silence that followed, he became aware of a gasping sound coming from a few feet away. He turned to find Naruto bent over slightly, using his hands pressed against his knees to support himself.

"Are you okay?" asked Hermione concernedly.

"Yeah," he answered between deep breaths, "I just couldn't breathe there for a second…" They seemed to accept this, as most figured out that this was his first encounter with a dementor and knew the effects they had. He was concerned, though, with just how badly it had affected him. He'd read about them in several books on dark creatures, but didn't realize the extent of their influence. And that was just an imitation dementor.

He'd hate to encounter a real one…

To Naruto's― as well as many others'― complete surprise, Usagi was suddenly by his side. She'd been standing out of the way near the door and crossed the room quickly when she saw the creature's effect on Naruto. After standing blankly by his side for a brief moment as he stood up straight again, she took a deep breath, and then threw her arms around him in a tight hug. He stiffened immediately in the embrace.

"_Usagi…san?" _he asked slowly, wondering what she was doing.

"_Come with me," _she whispered, letting him out of the hug and walking to the door. The DA members were left stunned in the room.

"Umm..." said Ron, "What just happened?"

The two shinobi stood in the hall way directly outside the door the the Room of Requirement. He stared at the rabbit mask before him; it offered no explanation as to what was going on, and so he was forced to ask.

"_Usagi, what-"_

_"Please don't speak... I don't know how long this courage will last for. Seeing you in there, and feeling the effects of that... that thing... it reminded me of why I made it to the ANBU forces to begin with." _She seemed to be incredibly nervous, but was showing more emotion than Naruto had seen in the entire time they'd been there. "_You always tried so hard... I was never any good at anything either So when you went off to train, I made a promise to myself..."_

Naruto, smart at he was, was lost in what she was saying- it just didn't make any sense.

"_And," _she continued, "_I kept it. I got a lot stronger... Enough that my father finally noticed and pulled some strings for me to be placed in a low tier of the ANBU Black Ops."_

She was rambling a little, and he was still unsure of what she was talking about. He was about to ask again, but her next action froze him before he had a chance to form the words; she reached a hand up to her mask and undid the string keeping it there. With one hand, she pulled back the hood that hid her long dark hair and with the other, she pulled off the mask that had been hiding her identity for several months. Now in front of someone whose face he knew well― who was, he realized, lacking her old unsure speech impediment― he found that it was his turn to stutter, as she so often did.

"_H-Hinata-chan?"_

* * *

Okay, breathe. Good.

Now, before you break out the torches, pitchforks, and rotten tomatoes, just remember this small thing: I am MADE of 70 percent evil, 15 percent crazy, 10 percent genius (it goes with the evil part) and 10 percent win. Yes, that's 105 percent. The last 10 allow me to do that.

Don't worry, all will be explained next chapter. Let's move on, shall we?

1. Whole lollipop scene was originally going to be an omake, but I decided to include it as part of the actual chapter. Don't ask me why! The lollipops will probably come up later… oh, and Sai's remark? Sorry, I couldn't resist! XD If you found it offensive… eh, not my problem. It needed a little bit of humor before everything turned to… well you know. Yay for comic relief!

2. Remember that the Harry Potter story takes place in the 90s (and Naruto probably does, too, if you were to give it a time frame, since Kishimoto said in an interview that it takes place around present day, maybe slightly before). It's odd to think Naruto is a child of the 80s… though it does explain the taste in fashion…

Okay, now… pairings. Let me start by saying this: I have two pairings for Naruto that I think are a real possibility in the Naruto series. I will always love SasuNaru. It's how I found this site, actually (though that's a story for another time… it involves whipped cream) and I think those two are perfect for each other once they work out their issues. I would include it in this story if it weren't for several reasons, including the clichéness of it in an hpxnaruto crossover and opposition to yaoi (which, I know, is not always the same thing as homophobia, but don't even get me started on that).

The second is NaruHina. In my opinion, it's the most likely pairing in the actual series. And when I write Sasunaru, I always feel the need to get Hinata out of the way by pairing her with someone else. That being said, the main pairing is going to be NaruHina. That was my original plan, and it turned out that it came in second in the poll after harem. Plus, there were people that wanted him to be paired with Usagi, no matter who she turned out to be (I kept track of that separately, and added it to NaruHina).

Hm… now that I think about it, a harem might work… with both Sasuke and Hinata! Lol, a bisexual Naruto in this fic… that would be really interesting, actually.

I'm just kidding.

…mostly.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	16. Demented

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Chapter 15 is here!

And now, only one tidbit I feel I must convey; I read in a short article in my local paper that said dementors are based on the feelings that depression gives. J.K. Rowling was extremely depressed before writing Harry Potter and before it had any success (it was rejected a bunch of times). So that cold feeling of never being cheerful again is really the physical feeling of depression and the dementors are the physical embodiment of it. Fits well into the story, no?

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing, the dreaded flashback-no-justu_

**Kyuubi speaking (in Naruto's head) **

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **The Sasukeliciousness of this chapter may prove overwhelming for some. Absorb at your own risk. (Also, disturbing mentions of Naruto's past… but really, expect it by now)

* * *

**Last Time:**

_"__And," __she continued, "__I kept it. I got a lot stronger... Enough so that my father finally noticed and pulled some strings for me to be placed in a low tier of the ANBU Black Ops."_

_She was rambling a little, and he was still unsure of what she was talking about. He was about to ask again, but her next action froze him before he had a chance to form the words; she reached a hand up to her mask and undid the string keeping it there. With one hand, she pulled back the hood that hid her long dark hair and with the other, she pulled off the mask that had been hiding her identity for several months. Now in front of someone whose face he knew well― who was, he realized, lacking her old unsure speech impediment― he found that it was his turn to stutter, as she so often did._

"_H-Hinata-chan?"_

_(Though Usagi is Hinata, she will be called Usagi when her mask is on and Hinata when it is off.)_

* * *

**Chapter 15: Demented **

The girl's pale eyes drifted away from Naruto's face and down to the floor in between their feet. He blinked a few more times in disbelief.

"_Um, hi Naruto-kun…"_

"_Wow…" _he responded, the situation finally sinking in, "_I mean, you must have worked really hard, right?"_

"_Well, you did, too. You're an ANBU now as well. And you didn't need an influential father to get you in."_ He nodded vaguely, reflecting on recent events.

"_Either way,"_ he said after a while, a small smile finding its way onto his face, "_I'm glad you're here. But come on… we should be getting back inside."_

Naruto and the newly re-masked Usagi entered the Room of Requirement again to find several of the DA members congratulating Zacharias Smith for successfully facing his fear. Naruto wondered what his fear could possibly be, but didn't ask. The two shinobi split at the door and moved back to the places they had been previously as if nothing had even happened. A few of the Hogwarts students looked like they wanted to know what had just happened, but for once they seemed to sense that they wouldn't be receiving any answers, had they voiced their questions in the first place.

A couple more people were brave enough to face the boggart. Naruto couldn't help but think something of their fears; it was like they didn't know what to be afraid of. Harry's fear was logical― Naruto didn't fancy having a dementor around either―but everyone else had fears that not even an academy student would be afraid of. Sure, spiders and clowns could be creepy from time to time, but it wasn't like they posed any real threat (though, he'd admit he'd seen a few clowns that looked as though they could be homicidal maniacs). Naruto had to remind himself that these teenagers had grown up in a vastly different world than he had. They were not taught how to torture at the same time as they learned their alphabet, as he had been, and did not learn how to kill with their bare hands in lieu of recess. They were sheltered from violence, while he was often on the receiving end of brutal beatings. All of them― yes, even the Weasley family― had grown up in relative comfort, with enough food to eat; they'd never had to sell their own bodies to scrounge up enough money for a small meal. They'd never killed anyone…

"Naruto." He looked up when someone called his name. It was Terry Boot. "Why don't you give it a go?" Naruto realized that, while he was thinking, everyone who was willing to face the boggart had already gone. He thought of something quickly to get out of it.

"Well I would," he responded, pulling back his sleeve slightly to look at the watch on his wrist, "But it we don't leave here soon, we'll get caught roaming the halls. And we can all kiss the DA, if not Hogwarts, goodbye."

Taking his advice, the students left in staggered pairs as they always did. The brilliant blonde waited behind as all the others left― he would just transport himself to the Gryffindor common room once everyone was gone. Usagi left a second before he planned to. When he took one last sweeping gaze around the room, however, his eyes fell upon the chest in the center of the floor, still rattling from the boggart that was once again trapped inside. Curious, his got his wand into his hand and approached the large, dark trunk.

When he flung the lid open, he was surprised to find that it was not the demonic version of him that crawled out from inside, as the boggart at Grimmauld Place had been. Instead, a figure precisely identical to the him that was standing there at that moment hoisted itself out of the heavy chest and stood before him, mirroring his battle-ready stance. When he slightly moved the arm that was holding his wand out erect, the boggart did as well. He took a step forward, and so did the copy. Almost in disbelief, he let out a small, scoff-like chuckle, before flicking his wand at the offending beast. It dissipated with a small puff of air.

As he put his wand away again, he could help but think… he was being so hypocritical to think that the fears of the others were trivial. In that sense, his was just as bad.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx With Sasuke, Halloween Night xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

People were screaming. But… who were they? And where was he?

Everything in his field of vision was deep, deep red. At points, he saw flashes of his worst memories. There was Itachi, bloodied sword run straight through his father… and himself, hand plunged deep through the chest of his best friend… and there was "that" time, with Naruto…

This feeling was worse than torture. And he wouldn't be wrong in saying it was comparative to the Mangekyou, and seemed to last just as long.

And the cold… the bitter, gripping cold that weighed down on his shoulders and held tight to his quickly beating heart.

In a second, it was gone. Sasuke stumbled forward slightly, trying to not breathe as hard as he was and shake the feeling of that awful cold.

"Now, Sasuke…" a high, cold voice cut through the air. "Did you really think you could hide your past from me?" Voldemort laughed humorlessly. "You made a good effort, though. And you're still useful to me, so I'll let it go… for now."

Sasuke lifted his head, showing no fear of the dark wizard, but he kept his gaze slightly lowered. He was still unsure; did the Dark Lord know of his true intentions or not? Either way, he couldn't afford to stop now.

"You are clear on the plan." It wasn't a question. Sasuke nodded once, his head having such minimal movement, it was as though he hadn't moved at all. "Good." Lord Voldemort held up his hand, where a large pendant hung from a long chain. He tossed it to the Uchiha, who caught it effortlessly. "Now go. If everything you've told me about these guards is true, then nothing should go wrong."

As Sasuke left the wizard's chamber, he kept his gaze low.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx At Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was the first Saturday in November. Halloween had passed, and a good time was had by all (except for Umbridge, perhaps, as an enchanted suit of armor followed her around the entire day, clanging as it walked and tripping over its own clunky metal feet. The one who bewitched the suit of armor was never found, though Naruto seemed to have a bit more of a smile that day, which may or may not have been a trick of the light).

It was also the day of the first Quidditch match of the year. Naruto had seen a few of the Gryffindor practices, but he'd yet to see an actual game played. Dressed in red and gold Gryffindor garb, he waited patiently in the stands of the Quidditch pitch, seated beside Hermione and Ginny. Usagi was across to the other side of the stadium, in the back of the bleacher box where the professors sat. Dumbledore was not there. As Naruto had been walking through the front doors with Ginny and Hermione to make their way down to the pitch, he'd overheard the headmaster discussing something with Professor McGonagall. Something about the grounds keeper…

The day was sunny, but the air had that early November nip about it. The weather had gotten much cooler very quickly and, as Fire Country was typically a much warmer place than Great Britain anyway, Naruto just couldn't get warm enough lately. He wrapped his Gryffindor scarf more tightly around his neck and snuggled deeper into his jacket. When he plunged his hands back into his pockets, one of them rested on a cold metal object. He took it out and examined it.

It was one of the fake galleons that Hermione had given to everyone in the DA. There were numbers engraved on the edges that changed to show when the next meeting would be, as they had to keep it fairly random and fitting with everyone's schedules. The coin heated up to alert the members of a meeting. Naruto wished it would do the same now, and unfreeze his slightly numb fingers. He put it and his hands back in his pocket, just as the two teams entered onto the field.

There was a lot of cheering for both teams as the game began. Though three houses, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff, were all rooting for the Gryffindor team, the Slytherins were cheering loud enough for their own team to rival that of the cheering for Gryffindor. This cheering only increased as the game progressed.

Soon, the score was 40-0, in favor of Slytherin. The students from the serpent house were singing a "cleverly" devised song― no doubt made up by Malfoy― that taunted Ron, who was playing the position of the new Gryffindor keeper. The song, which insulted both his playing ability and his family situation, combined with his pre-existing worries about the game and produced some awesomely awful goal-keeping. Harry felt sorry for his best friend, but had more important things to worry about. Namely, the golden Snitch.

Hovering only just higher than the stands, Harry set himself level with Malfoy, who was playing the position of seeker for Slytherin from the other end of the pitch. After a short while of looking, he spotted a flash of gold high above them, equidistant from he and Malfoy. He shot up towards it and saw Malfoy, from the corner of his eye, do the same a few seconds later.

That was when the stadium got colder…

Sasuke waited for his cue. He had entered the school grounds with Lucius Malfoy, henge'd to look like the man's wife. Though Malfoy senior was there under the guise of watching his son play, he was there for another reason as well. When the two seekers shot upwards after the Snitch, he took that secondary distraction as a chance to summon them.

Three dark dementors drifted their way into the stadium, adding even more chill to the air. Naruto, who had been wrapped up in cheering Harry on until that point, paused as he felt the paralyzing cold set in. It was like an intense pressure around him, accompanied by an odd lack of chakra, that made his heart drop and his limbs hang limply at his sides. Slowly, the cheering ceased.

Harry had flown back down again, having lost sight of the Snitch, to find himself in the center of the eerily quiet stands. And he recognized this cold…

From his spot behind one of the walls of the Quidditch pitch, in a spot where no one was sitting so there was no chance of anyone accidentally seeing him, Sasuke― no longer disguised as Narcissa― looked down at the pendant that rested on his partially bare chest. He wasn't sure exactly what it was, though he knew it was some sort of talisman or amulet. It emulated a certain warmth from it and seemed to ward off the effects of the deathly cloaked beings, a valuable thing considering how much they crippled him. When the crowd grew still, he went ahead with his part of the plan. With a smirk, he bit his thumb enough to draw blood and slammed his hands onto the ground while saying the name of the summoning jutsu.

The snake that appeared was by far not the largest he could summon, but it did the trick. With a crash, it burst through the wall and onto the field. This, of course, created an instant panic. People were screaming― even the Slytherins, who, despite being faced with a being that was supposed to represent them, didn't particularly want to die that day.

As Quidditch players quickly moved away to land on the other side of the green field, the great serpent slithered its way across the neatly manicured pitch with Sasuke standing firmly on its head, face blank. He looked around the stadium, searching for the boy he'd come for. Both the students and faculty were scared senseless. In the Gryffindor stands, Hermione heard a sound beside her and turned slowly to find that Naruto had stood up and was glaring at the mysterious dark-haired figure.

"_Sasuke…" _he growled under his breath.

"You know him?" she asked in a whisper, barely heard over the sound of people screaming and the resounding panic.

"Yeah," replied Naruto darkly, drawing out his wand, "I know him." The blonde knew he was lucky to be able to use magic. Given his state at the moment, he doubted he would even stand a chance in physical combat against Sasuke. Just then, the authoritative voice of Professor McGonagall boomed throughout the stadium.

"All students please exit the stands immediately!" the head of house shouted into the voice-projection system. Her tone was laced with an obvious panic.

The students didn't need to be told twice.

As everyone scrambled to get down the stairs to flat ground, Naruto stayed behind where he was. He was both making sure that everyone was getting out safely― Usagi was doing the same from the other side― and trying to think of a way to get Sasuke away from the students without anyone getting hurt. But the dementors that were still hovering around and the sight of Sasuke was making it hard for him to think.

The wraith-like creatures were down near the field, now, getting closer to the mass of students and teachers that were trying to get back to the safety of the school. Naruto saw that Usagi was down on the field, too, trying to get the students away from them as quickly as possible. Finding he could do nothing from his spot atop the Gryffindor stands, the blonde shinobi ran down the zigzagging stairs that went from the stands to the ground, pushing quickly past Neville and Luna, who were still making their way down the stairs (Luna had decided to sit with them in the Gryffindor section, but her giant lion-shaped hat seemed to be slowing her and Neville down as they descended). In a second, he was out on the Quidditch field, where Sasuke and the serpent were advancing towards the group of students, as the dementors were. The group was a fair distance away now― not a farther distance than Sasuke could cover in a few seconds to maim any in the student body he so chose, of course. But that was not what the dark-haired traitor did. He was hanging back in his advance and seemed to be scanning the crowd for something. Or, more likely, some_one_.

Taking in as much air as he could, Naruto put his loud voice to use. "_Oi, Sasuke!"_ Said teen turned to look back at the Quidditch field, where Naruto had just exited the stadium. "_What the hell are you doing here?" _the blonde growled out his question, his blue eyes narrowed in accusation.

"What," Sasuke replied loudly to Naruto's question in English, trying to provoke him, "No warm welcome? No tears of love and joy?" Blood red Sharingan eyes flashed at him. "No proclamation of how you'll drag me back home with your dying breath?"

"S_hut up. It's obvious who you're working for now. And if you're here for Harry, you can just forget it."_

Sasuke's previously unemotional face now sported an arrogant smirk.

"_Well, then,"_ he said, "_You're lucky I'm not here for him."_

With that, several kunai were thrown from Sasuke's side. It was obvious this was just a way to initiate the fight; from the distance they were coming from and the obviousness with which they were thhrown, Naruto could have easily dodged them. But, as it turns out, he didn't have to. With several metallic clangs, the kunai were knocked aside by more of their own kind. Both boys turned to see Usagi racing towards them at top speed, her hands ready with more kunai like the ones she'd just thrown. Naruto used Sasuke's momentary distraction at her appearance to make his move.

"_Reducto!"_ he yelled, aiming his wand at the giant snake. The summoned animal, caught off guard by the powerful spell, disappeared in a puff of smoke just as Sasuke leapt from its head. Sasuke plummeted from the three-story height he'd been standing at, landing without so much as a sound. As he came out of the crouched position he'd landed in, more kunai rained upon him from the Hogwarts guard. He dodged some, while deflecting others with the sword he'd drawn from the sheath on his back.

As the two of them engaged in their mid-range battle, Naruto took off at a speed that was fast, but would still appear normal to any curious onlookers (and considering this was Hogwarts, there was many a nosy student and staff member). He knew he needed to get Sasuke as far as possible from those who might be placed in danger. In this case, the path away from Sasuke took him towards the Forbidden Forest. Though it was far away, he could hear the sound of clanging metal following him as he headed for the dark tree line.

It was, however, also around this time that the dementors deserted the grouped majority of the Hogwarts population in favor of the action that was nearing the edge of the dark forest. The dementors fed on human depression and misery. In their presence, plenty of this was available to them around the crowd that was currently being ushered into the school. But never had a dementor tasted such delicious woe since the sentencing of Sirius Black, the truly innocent man who had spent thirteen years in Azkaban for a crime he did not commit. The misery emanating from that blonde boy was enough to make the dark creatures shiver in excitement; anyone who has felt the sensation of a dementor's joy knows it is not a feeling one wants to experience twice.

Now out of sight of the prying eyes of the school, Naruto took off at his normal quick pace, breezing past a small hut by the side of the woods―its smoking chimney sending the smell of burning wood and treacle baking into the autumn air― and into the dark undergrowth. He could sense that Sasuke entered the forest soon after him, followed shortly by Usagi. Naruto didn't stop until he reached a clearing, where the ground was empty and a circlet of nearly-leafless branches shuddered overhead. It was there that he turned to face the path where he knew his former teammate would be coming from, holding his wand out in his right hand and keeping the other hand on his weapons pouch. He was glad that it was a weekend, as he was not required to wear the school robes that would have weighed him down in such a situation. At this point, he could not afford any hindrance to his movement.

As predicted, the two of them appeared from the trees within a minute's time. Sasuke ran in Naruto's direction, sword ready, but was kept at bay by a few projectile weapons and a short barrage of spells, which Sasuke dodged, his Sharingan eyes blazing. Now close enough to initiate hand-to-hand combat, Usagi attempted to hit him with her family's signature gentle-fist style, byakugan activated behind her mask. _His_ family's doujustu, however, was able to detect even her fastest movements before she was able to make them, and he dodged those attacks as well.

"_A Hyuuga, huh?"_ Sasuke asked arrogantly, "_No matter. I know you're weak in long-range fighting."_ After saying this, he immediately flipped away from the ANBU and landed in one of the tall trees. He threw a large group of kunai and shuriken at her; not one hit her, but they made loud thunking sounds when they stuck into the tree behind her. In what was probably the same second that she realized what was about to happen, the exploding tags that had been attached to two of the kunai exploded, felling the trees they'd stuck into. Falling branches and bits of shrapnel from the exploded weapons rained down upon her. At the hit of a particularly large branch against the back of her skull, she was immediately knocked out cold.

"_That was easy," _Sasuke thought aloud. Naruto clenched his fists, angry and concerned for Usagi. Sasuke jumped down from his spot in the tree and the two of them stared at each other for what seemed like a few minutes (though in reality, it was only a few seconds). Naruto was not the idiot he used to pretend to be; this was one battle he would definitely not be charging into. His mind was busy coming up with a thousand different ways that he could go about beating Sasuke. This was Sasuke's style anyway. He was never one to immediately move onto the offensive. As part of his 'too-cool-for-this' attitude, he waited for his opponent to come to him.

The two former friends were surrounded by nothing but the trees and the sounds of the forest― animals had scattered at the falling of the trees, and wing-flapping and footsteps could be heard all around. Naruto threw the a few shuriken towards Sasuke, testing to see what he would do. The dark-haired teen moved to the side to avoid the projectiles; he succeeded in this task, but the next moment found him pulled forcefully back against the tree behind him. The heavy chain of the amulet around his neck had been caught with one of the shuriken, and was now pinned to the tree between two of its points. Unfazed, he pulled the chain off from around his neck, ignoring it and the loss of warmth he felt for the moment.

This was, admittedly, a mistake.

The dementors had caught up with them. This was made immediately apparent by the unnatural cold that settled over the clearing, and the stillness that materialized around them. The forest was now silent, save for the sound of one set of footsteps, moving quickly from the direction in which they'd come. The three wraith-like beings swooped down from the sky that was visible over the circle of the clearing. Immediately, Naruto was assaulted by his worst memories. Numb, he dropped his wand and previously ready weapons as his arms hung down limply to his sides. He felt like he had that night when the boggart transformed into a dementor. No― this was a thousand times worse. This was the dark hand of death with its fingers clutched around his lungs. It was each scathing look he'd ever felt the sting of, and every burning name that he'd been called. Every beating, every time he'd run out of money and had to do something… awful. His knees collapsed from under him and he fell to the ground, shaking.

Unbeknownst to him, Sasuke was also being pelted with the flashes of memories that made up his worst nightmares. He felt like all of his chakra was being drained from him, killing him slowly, and painfully. As he struggled to breathe and stay conscious, he looked across the clearing to his 'best friend'. Naruto appeared to be unconscious, now, but his body was twitching with convulsions that seemed to threaten to snap his body each time. When one of the dementors floated down closer to him, Sasuke fell to the ground as well and allowed for the horrific blackness to claim him.

The last thing that he heard and saw was the sound of someone yelling some unfamiliar words, and the sight of a silvery, fiery-looking bird chasing the dark creatures away.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx In Konoha… 4 Years Earlier xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (A/N: disturbing, yaoi-related/implied themes follow. Just to warn you…)

_Sasuke was angry. His team hadn't gone on an actual mission since the C-ranked one in the country of wave. It was becoming annoying. How was he supposed to get any better if he never did anything to improve? And how would he ever beat Itachi? Seriously. He was already 12 years old. By this age, Itachi had already been going on A-ranked missions for a few years. He'd joined ANBU when he was 13, after all._

_Silently growling, Sasuke shoved his hands deeper into the pockets of his shorts and continued on his anger-ridden walk. He was so absorbed in his thoughts, he didn't pay any mind to the direction in which he as going._

_Now Konoha, which was far too large to be called a village anyway, had all the amenities of a modern city. There were several supermarkets, a shopping center (or "mall" as Sasuke was so resentful of, as it was a gathering place for his fan club who, indeed, wanted to maul him with their love), a rich end of town―that's where Sasuke was from― a poor end of town―Naruto lived around there somewhere― a library… and what modern city would be complete without a red-light district? Yes, Konoha had one of those, too. And that's where blind annoyance found Sasuke walking in the twilight of that September evening. _

_He was pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of a familiar voice._

"_We agreed, now you're supposed to pay me!" came the angry voice from a nearby alleyway. Sasuke stopped walking and went the corner of said alley._

Naruto?_ he thought, realizing where exactly he was. But what was Naruto doing in a place like this?_

"_You don't deserve a single Ryou," proclaimed the voice of a man who sounded to be about in his mid-forties. Sasuke looked around the corner to find Naruto glaring angrily at a middle-aged man, whose face was set in a belittling sneer._

"_Hey, I'm a Konoha shinobi an―" began Naruto defiantly._

"_Idiot," said the man, and Sasuke noted the headband on his forehead, "So am I. Besides what are you going to do? On the off chance you beat me in a fight, it's not like anyone will come to your defense anyway if I accuse you of attacking. And what are you going to say, that one of your tricks refused to pay you after you sucked him off?" Sasuke's eyes widened, and the man let out a horrible laugh as Naruto stood there, still looking defiant, but his face held more than a touch of shame. "Face it; there's nothing you can do. You're nothing but a poor, dirty, little slut. But I'll humor you." He reached into his pocket and drew out a small handful of coins. "Take it. You're barely even worth this." As Sasuke turned back around the corner, his brain trying to decide if what he was seeing was real, there came the sound of a few coins hitting the ground in the alleyway. When Sasuke looked back, the man was already jumping away on the rooftops, as if nothing had ever happened. Naruto crouched down to pick up the coins and paused for a second to count them._

"_Well, it's barely enough," said Naruto aloud to no one in particular, "But I can probably get some ramen with this much…" Sasuke turned to go, in a state of shock. But before he left, he heard the sound of Naruto spitting, and mumbling, "Anything to get the taste out. Jackass… they always do this. Every time…"_

(1)

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Hogwarts, the Present xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was bright. What happened to the dark? That crushing, cold dark… Naruto wondered; was it safe to come out, now that all of that dark was gone? Tentatively, he opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the dark wooden rafters above his head. For a while, there was nothing but the sight of those rafters and the sense of being in a clean, sterile environment. Soon, he could hear the sound of someone bustling about, and faint voices around him. They seemed to notice his eyes were open. And were they calling him? Slowly, he pieced it together.

Naruto sat up quickly as the memory of what had happened came flooding back. He was in the hospital wing, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione were surrounding the bed that he was currently in.

"How long was I asleep?" he asked, not waiting for them to finish their sighs of relief and voicing of concerns. Caught off guard a little, Hermione responded.

"A few hours," she said. "But I don't think Madame Pomfrey wants you sitting up so soon…" Ignoring her completely, Naruto stood and stepped away from the bed. He was relieved to find that he had not been changed out of his normal clothes, and that his weapons pouch, left mostly untouched, was merely resting on the nightstand beside the bed. He attached it back to his spot on his belt and stepped into the center of the room, between the two rows of beds. "Naruto, you really shouldn't," continued Hermione as Naruto swept his eyes around the room. "I heard Professor McGonagall telling Madame Pomfrey that you had the worst reaction to a dementor that they ever seen. She had to use a full-body bind on you to stop you from accidentally hurting yourself."

"It doesn't surprise me," he mumbled, crossing to the bed across from his, which was enclosed by curtains. When he opened it, his suspicions were confirmed; there was Hinata, lying on the bed with her ANBU mask off. She was resting after sustaining the injuries that she had. Naruto closed the curtains again, grimacing at the explaining he'd have to do later. He looked around the room again. There was no on else in the hospital wing at that time.

Any level of hope that he'd― foolishly, in his later opinion― begun to build up instantly plummeted. Really, what did he expect would happen? That Sasuke would still be there, on the Hogwarts grounds? His tall, straight posture bent a little, his shoulders slumping in disappointment.

"Glad to see you awake," said a voice form behind him, and he turned to see the old headmaster entering the hospital wing with an air of calmness about him. He looked at Naruto over the top of his half-moon spectacles. "Were you looking for that other boy?" he asked, all-knowing. Naruto didn't respond, but that made the answer all the more obvious. "Ah, yes… well unfortunately, he awoke when Minerva and I attempted to move him. He grabbed something from a tree and was gone in a puff." Dumbledore raised an ancient white eyebrow. "I believe some explanations are in order." Naruto nodded and followed the old wizard as he swept from the room. "I trust you three can make it back to the Gryffindor dormitory?" he called back to said trio, who were shocked at how quickly the event had transpired.

Harry watched as the two of them left, irritated. Dumbledore hadn't looked at them― him― once.

* * *

"…and so he betrayed the village and left to gain more power from Orochimaru. He's been gone ever since," said Naruto, concluding the long story he'd been telling nonstop since he arrived in the headmaster's office. Sure, he'd left a lot of things out, mostly about how close he and Sasuke had been. Though Naruto's story had been seamless, the Dumbledore's eyes, though conveying concern at the tale, twinkled slightly. It was as if he knew there was more to Naruto's story, but he did not ask any questions about it.

"It is safe to assume, though," the old man said instead, "That he is now working for Lord Voldemort." Naruto nodded in affirmation.

"Yes, and it is probably just another ploy to gain more power. I don't think he knows what he's getting into…" Naruto's brow knitted together, as he thought of what might happen.

"Indeed. It is a very foolish thing to take Voldemort lightly." There was a slight pause, as the words weighed heavily in the air. "Ah, well you may go back to the dormitory. But on a related note, continue guarding Harry as you have been." Naruto blinked. Of course the old man knew― how wouldn't he? "I fear for his safety. Not only because there may be another attack, but for his mental state as well. Keep that in mind."

Naruto nodded, standing to go. He crossed to room and was about to leave through the door, when Dumbledore spoke to him again.

"And Naruto," he called. Said boy turned to look back at the headmaster, whose eyes were once again sparkling, though now they held a certain heavy sadness to them that made him appear more the old age that he was. "This boy―Sasuke, as it were… he may ignite something within you (2), but keep your head when around him. And be careful…" Naruto nodded again, more slowly this time, and exited the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

Dumbledore was left now, an old man with his head resting in his hand as he sat behind his desk, with nothing but memories, and regrets.

* * *

1. If you couldn't tell what was happening there, then yeah, Naruto did give that guy (and many others, as is implied) a blowjob in that alley in exchange for money. Vulgar, yes. Sorry if this offends you, or you find it cliché (I can't tell if it is) or whatever. I've had the idea for this part of Naruto's past for a long time. It was only enhanced by when I saw an episode(s) of 'Queer as Folk' that was about a 16 year old character who had been forced into prostitution (by his mother, no less). For those that don't know, a red-light district is an area in a city where the sex industry thrives, and a trick is the name for a prostitute's client. This story is marked as mature. Deal with it. This will come up more in future chapters.

2. Slight allusion to the seventh book… and you should know what that means –coughdumbledoreisgaycough-

I'm purposely being ambiguous about how Naruto and Sasuke may have felt for each other (felt, people. It's not just a soft woven fabric, it's also in **past tense. **Bear in mind that Naruto will end up with Hinata). But I will happily address any questions or concerns about the chapter or plot. And of course, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	17. Visions of Death

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Let's just get on with the chapter, shall we?

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing_

**Kyuubi speaking (in Naruto's head) **

"_Speaking in Japanese" _(In England only)

**Warnings: **…really? None? Wow!

* * *

**Last Time:** _Disaster strikes at the first Quidditch match of the year― Sasuke interrupts it on orders from Voldemort. His mission: to kill Naruto and incapacitate the school guard, so that Harry would be left in the open for Voldemort's big plan. Ultimately, he fails at this task. _

_In the midst of this, we learn secrets about Naruto's life in Konoha._

* * *

**Chapter 16: Visions of Death**

Sasuke was in pain. It was comparable to the worst physical pain he had ever felt, all compressed into each nerve of his body. His veins and muscles and bones were all screaming, and, though he was too blinded by the pain to have any knowledge or control of this, he was screaming along with them. This pain could not quite reach the mental torture brought on by the Mangekyou Sharingan, but the physical aspect of it came very close, bringing with it the sensation that his chakra was eating him alive.

Then it ended. Sasuke pulled himself up from the cold stone floor, his stoic mask once again in place as he wiped some unsightly drool― or was it foam? ―from the corner of his mouth. His muscles were still contracting in involuntary spasms, but overall, he was the picture of composure. Even Lucius Malfoy would be jealous― and probably was, if he was any one of the many masked Death Eaters that stood in Voldemort's chamber room to bear witness to the torture. Sasuke's thoughts were pushed far into him, now, recessed into a shielded corner of his mind.

He did not know the reason that he was able to do this, but in fact, his Sharingan gave him access to a variation of skills employed in Occlumency. Further still, the Mangekyou was similar to high-level Legilimency. This overlapping of methods for using chakra or magic (or whatever a particular civilization called their internal energy) was common, but not well known. This, however, is a story for another time. Voldemort was speaking. When he spoke, those around him were compelled to listen.

"You displease me, Sasuke. I had thought, given your display of skill, that you would be more competent in a task set before you. Let this serve as a warning to you and others. This is what happens when you fail at a menial task." Voldemort's voice was high and cold, chilling the bones of the Death Eaters in the room there to heed the warning. The Dark Lord meant what he said; he'd used nearly his full strength behind the casting of that particular Cruciatus. A lesser man would have crumbled and gone mad― or perhaps even died.

But Sasuke was not a lesser man. The mission Voldemort gave him had been nothing that he couldn't handle. He'd gone to Hogwarts with the simple intention to kill Naruto. The plan was basic; distract the guard with a summon, lead Naruto away from aid, use the power of the Dementors on the already depressed boy, and kill him while subdued. For reasons known only to him, Sasuke was unable to do this. Things just hadn't gone as planned.

"Do not fail me again. I'll expect you not to, not that you are aware of the consequences. I _will_ have my plan come to fruition."

Sasuke was no longer looking at the dark wizard. As if he cared about a madman's plan… the only plan he cared about was his own. He was, however, watching as Voldemort levitated various objects from around the room into his grasp. Crimson eyes blazed as he examined the silvery trails that his master's magic left in its wake. His eyes could see the spells and, though he was not able to mimic them without a wand, he recorded each spell he saw in his vast memory of techniques.

This, undoubtedly, would be useful.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Somewhere in London xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Itachi looked around. His surrounding were plain, if a tad run-down, and just the ordinary view of an almost empty street in the downtown of an old city. His eyes revealed otherwise. Parts of this city were surrounded by layers of thick, swirling chakra. He closed his eyes in the next moment, not wanting to damage them further.

He'd followed the trails into a dark pub to which an inn was attached. He approached the bald, toothless barman and carefully asked about staying in one of the rooms, employing language skills that he'd never actually had a use for. Afterwards, he settled in to this portion of the wizarding world.

Here, he'd watch and wait.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx At Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hagrid was back. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had gone to visit him late in the night after the disastrous Quidditch match, under the disguise of the Invisibility Cloak. They'd believed they were sneaking out and that nobody― including Naruto and Usagi― knew that they were anywhere but in bed. In reality, one of Naruto's clones, in full ANBU gear, trailed them, just to be safe.

Hagrid had confirmed the suspicions of the Golden Trio; he'd gone with Madame Maxime on a mission from Dumbledore to try to negotiate with the northern giants… and returned with more than just a few scratches as tokens of their "affection". Overall, the mission was a total failure, having not persuaded any giants to fight on Dumbledore's side at all.

There had been a close call in which Umbridge had come to inspect Hagrid's cabin. The Trio, hidden under the Invisibility Cloak, narrowly escaped her probing eye. The clone Naruto was positioned outside at the back of the cabin and had used chakra to stand atop the deep snow to prevent leaving footprints to incriminate him, as three other sets of footprints nearly had convicted Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

It had taken a while to catch Hagrid up to the current happenings of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry― many of which he was none too happy about. And as they carefully made their way back to they school, Hermione now erasing their tracks with an Obliteration Charm, they all had silently hoped that Hagrid would not be the next victim of the Hogwarts High Inquisitor.

Hermione brought Naruto down the grounds to meet Hagrid the next day (they'd left Harry and Ron behind to sulk as they finished massive piles of homework). She attempted to convince Hagrid to change his lesson plan for Care of Magical Creatures for that year to something Umbridge would approve of― or at least not disapprove of― but to no avail. Hagrid wanted the creatures he would be displaying in his classes to be a secret until the day of those classes.

And so, the following Tuesday, the group trudged through more deep snow down to Hagrid's cabin for their Care of Magical Creatures class, apprehensive of what he would be showing them that day and hoping that Umbridge would not be there to witness anything that might go wrong.

She was nowhere in sight as they approached a still beaten-up looking Hagrid, who was holding what looked like half a dead cow over his shoulder.

"We're goin' inter the forest today!" he called happily, indicating the dark trees behind him. "Bit more sheltered! Anyway, they prefer the dark…" As the group moved forward into the shade of the thick trees, Harry heard a sharp and slightly panicked voice from behind him.

"What prefers the dark?" Malfoy was asking Crabbe and Goyle, looking nervous and even more pale than usual. "What did he say prefers the dark― did you hear?"

Harry exchanged a glance with Naruto, who had heard the fearful teen as well. The blonde snickered slightly under his breath, and Harry felt compelled to join him, recalling Malfoy's fear of the Forbidden Forest from their first year.

"Now," announced Hagrid, "what we're studyin' today is pretty rare, I reckon I'm probably the on'y person in Britain who's managed ter train 'em―"

"And you're sure they're trained, are you?" Malfoy's voice was now even more panicked, prompting a few more snickers. But most of the students looked just as apprehensive as Malfoy, even a few of the Gryffindors. Hagrid, however, cheerfully assured them that everything was fine, hoisted the dead cow higher on his shoulder, and led them deeper into the forest.

They reached a dark clearing where no snow had been able to fall through the trees to reach the ground. Hagrid tossed the cow onto the dirt in front of him and the class and let out several piercing cries that echoed through the trees like the call of some monstrous bird. Most of the class was too scared to laugh at the cry.

From between the trees they came, their blank, white, shining eyes peering into the faces of the students, most of whom were still waiting fearfully for the animals to arrive. Behind the eyes emerged the skeletal forms of great, black, winged horses, their dragonish heads moving closer from the gloom. The two creatures bent to tear pieces of the cow with pointed fangs.

Harry, relieved that the creatures were not a figment of his and Luna's imaginations, glanced at the others in the class. To his surprise, most were looking around as if waiting. Only Naruto, Neville and a tall Slytherin boy seemed to even see the creatures before them. Each eyed the strange creatures with a mixture of wonder, horror, and disgust.

"Alrigh' now," said Hagrid, "Who here can see 'em?" Harry and the others he'd noticed looking raised their hands. "Yeah… yeah, I knew you'd be able ter, Harry." He said seriously. Harry put his hand down, confused. "Fer those for yeh who can' see 'em… look there." He pointed to the carcass, where more thestrals had joined in its devouring. This observation was met immediately with shrieks of horror from the girls in the class (and Malfoy).

"W-what's doing that?" Parvati demanded, backing away in a terrified manner.

"Thestrals!" said Hagrid proudly. Hermione immediately seemed to comprehend this. Naruto knew he had heard the name somewhere, but couldn't quite remember in what context.

"But those are really unlucky!" protested Parvati, "Professor Trelawney told me so."

"Hogwash," said Hagrid, chuckling, "tha's jus' superstition. Now who can tell me why some o' you can see 'em an' some can't?"

Hermione, predictably, raised her hand, and was immediately called upon. "The only people who can see thestrals are those who have seen death," she informed, promptly winning ten points for Gryffindor.

"_Hem, hem._"

And there was Umbridge, come to ruin the day.

Naruto bristled with displeasure, and tried to ignore the squat hag as she made fun of Hagrid and his teaching, looking for any excuse to make the half-giant look bad. Then she turned to a frightened-looking Neville.

"You can see, them, correct? Whom did you see die?" Her tone was indifferent.

"My… my granddad," replied Neville. She scribbled something down and moved on, uncaring.

By the end of her mocking inspection, Harry was quaking with fury, while Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy laughed as if they were sharing a grand old joke. Naruto looked after her with distaste, and then turned back towards the thestrals as the students were just about to leave. They were nearly finished devouring the cow carcass now, and he watched with mild interest. This lesson in thestrals had shown him just how few of the students at the school had first hand experience with death.

And, with that, how even fewer would be prepared for the inevitable war.

Later, as they made their way across the deserted grounds to the greenhouse for Herbology, Hermione ranted about her hatred for Dolores Umbridge.

"…and, I know, Hagrid doesn't always have a concept of how dangerous some creatures are, but thestrals are at least _interesting_… I mean, how some people can see them and others can't? I wish I could."

"Do you?" asked Harry quietly. Hermione instantly realized the implication behind her words.

"Oh― oh, Harry, no― no, I'm sorry, of course I don't― that was a really stupid thing to say…"

"It's okay," said Harry quickly.

"Is it?" asked Naruto, pitching into the conversation for the first time since they'd left the class. The others looked at him questioningly. He continued. "Is it okay that only a few people are familiar with death?" They stared at him. "I'm not saying death is a good thing. But so few of the people here will be prepared for what brings that death and what comes after it. Both of our worlds― the wizarding world and the shinobi world― are on the cusp of war. Which do you think is better prepared for its casualties?"

The three didn't respond, and continued to stare at him in awe and horror.

"I'm not trying to be morbid," he amended with a feeble laugh, "I'm just saying… now come on, we're going to be late for class." The blond boy wandered in the direction of the warm greenhouse, trying to get out of the cold as quickly as possible. Somewhat reluctantly, the others followed.

* * *

Christmas was arriving soon, bringing with it peace, goodwill towards men, and an avalanche of homework for the fifth year students. Likewise, the December trip to Hogsmeade provided an opportunity for buying presents for friends and loved ones, fun in the snow or in the warmth of the Three Broomsticks, and the utter destruction of meddlesome books.

Usagi had remained at the school, to oversee the safety of those who stayed behind and to supervise the hanging of the elaborate Christmas decorations. One of Naruto's clones stayed for winter antics with Ron, Harry, and Hermione, while the real him went off with Hermione's copy of _Witchipedia_ in tow. He was going to keep his, as it could prove to be invaluable in the future, but destroy all others if possible. Just in case.

He entered the Scrivenshaft's, the small book and stationary store where they'd purchased the 'all-knowing guide', and recognized the witch that stood behind the counter. Luckily for him, the sole other customer left soon after he entered.

"Excuse me," he said, putting on his most polite face and placing the large tome on the counter before the clerical witch. "Two of my friends bought copies of this book here back around the beginning of October. Please, it's very important that I see all other copies of this book that you may have, as well as records of who bought it and, if possible, any other stores that may sell this particular volume." He tried to sound as official as possible, hoping she wouldn't question his motives.

"Well, I'm not sure that I can do that, young man. That information is not always available to the public."

Naruto sighed. He'd hoped he wouldn't have to use this card.

"Well," he said, leaning close as though he were about to divulge a major secret. "You've heard of Albus Dumbledore, correct?" She nodded.

"Good man, that Headmaster Dumbledore is." Naruto thanked his luck that he'd encountered a Dumbledore admirer.

"The truth is, I'm acting undercover for Dumbledore right now. He asked me himself to find out about this book, but to keep really quiet. You know, just in case." He let his words fall heavily, as if Death Eaters or ministry officials could pop out and steal the information at any moment. The middle-aged witch nodded again. "So I really need to know this information. For Dumbledore."

"Let's see what we can do, then," she said with a small smile and a note of excitement in her voice, as if she were sharing a secret as important as one about the Order of the Phoenix. She lifted her glasses― half-moon, as Dumbledore's were― from where they hung on a string of beads around her neck and placed them on her nose. She looked down through the lenses at the gold lettering on the front of the large book. A moment later, she pulled them off again and shook her head. "I'm sorry. We've never carried this title."

"Are you sure?" Naruto looked around the store, as if to see stacks of the book anywhere around the room.

"Of course," she sniffed, "I'm the sole proprietor of this establishment. I remember every book we've ever sold, and I know for sure that we have never sold a copy of this book here. Perhaps you are confusing this with another store that you found this at. Are you certain your friends bought it here?"

"Quite certain, madam." His voice was turned down now. This didn't look good… it was even bordering on suspicious. "Is there any way you can find out if any other bookstores sell this reference guide?"

"There is a spell, yes. But it will take a moment."

He nodded and moved a short distance away, looking at the store's stationary supplies. As he browsed, he found a self-inking quill with a supposedly never-ending ink supply that would make a good gift for Hermione. He brought it back to the counter just as she was about to call him over again.

"It's quite strange," she said with a small frown. "There are no bookstores that have any record of buying or selling this book. The only explanation I can come up with is that it was independently published and not sold in stores. I'm afraid I can't help you there." He nodded grimly and pulled the book off the counter again. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Yes, thank you. I'd just like to buy this quill."

As he was leaving, the witch called out to him once more. "Happy Christmas, dear! Give my regards to Professor Dumbledore!"

He nodded his affirmation and departed, thinking all the while. Who would have published _Witchipedia_ and sell it at a small shop in a tiny wizarding village, only to have erased the shop owner's memory of the sale, if that was the case? And for that matter, was it so coincidental that it had been Hermione and Usagi who had found and purchased this mysterious book? It was highly suspicious and led Naruto to believe that perhaps the book was far more dangerous than any of them had previously guessed.

* * *

"Well, since this is the last meeting we'll be having before winter break, I thought we should review what we've learned so far."

Zacharias gave Harry disapproving look. "We're not starting anything new?" he asked in a loud, disgruntled whisper. "I wouldn't have come if I'd've known that…"

"Such a shame you had to join us, then…" countered Fred loudly. Several people sniggered.

"Okay, everyone pair up, we'll start with the Impediment Jinx…"

In addition to the Impediment Jinx, they ended up practicing the Stunning Charm and the Full-Body Bind (using cushions for the latter two, of course). Naruto, who was working with Neville, had noticed a huge improvement in not only the boy's spellwork, but in his confidence as well. The blonde shinobi was beginning to see the benefit of the DA meetings.

After an hour, Harry called it to a halt and the students left in their usual staggered pairs of twos and threes. Naruto would have stayed and waited, but Hermione led him away, only giving a sly glance back at Harry and Cho as a reason for doing so. When the room was deserted, Harry stopped pretending to straighten the cushions in one corner and turned to find Cho standing in the middle of the room, beneath the mistletoe that Dobby had hung there, with tears dripping silently down her face…

Ron and Hermione were worried when Harry returned to the common room later in a state of absolute shock, but quickly were supplied with a reason.

"He looks happy if you ask me," said Naruto of his charge's catatonic state, bending over his History of Magic essay to look for small mistakes. "So how did things go with Cho?"

"You kissed her, didn't you?" asked Hermione, doing the same meticulous editing for the third time of an enormously long letter to Viktor Krum (which Ron was looking at in disgust). Harry nodded.

"How was it, mate?" asked Ron pumping his fists in triumph. Harry paused a moment before responding.

"…wet."

The others burst out laughing, and Harry was all but forced to spill the details.

* * *

Hours later, the boys were all in bed. Harry was dreaming about Cho and her trouble coping with Cedric's loss. It was an entirely ridiculous vision involving masses of chocolate frog cards, Harry's Firebolt, and Christmas baubles shaped like Dobby's head. If Harry had been awake to see his dream, he was sure he would be laughing hysterically.

Then the dream changed. He was smooth, and powerful, and flexible, sliding over dark, cold stone and through small spaces. He recognized this place vaguely― it was the place he so often dreamed about. He reached the end of the dark corridor, where there was normally the locked door that he was never able to pass. But now, there was the figure of a man there, lying on the floor. Harry tasted the air with a forked tongue; the man was not dead, merely sleeping. Harry would not bite for now…

But then the man stirred and stood, pointing a wand at Harry. He had no choice but to attack…

From his bed, Naruto heard a sound. Someone was moaning, as if in extreme pain. The shinobi jumped up immediately, ready to face an attack.

"What's going on?" came Ron's tired voice from the bed beside him. But at the sound of another moan of pain, Ron was up and fully awake. "It's Harry! _Harry_!"

Naruto ran to the entrance of Usagi's tent, truly glad for the first time that year that she slept so close. He called for her, and she appeared a moment later, sans ANBU gear, but still wearing a mask. They rushed to Harry's bedside, arriving just in time to see him roll over his sheets and vomit all over the floor. He was clutching his forehead in pain.

"He's really ill!" cried Neville. "Should we call someone?"

"Yes," affirmed Naruto, "Usagi will take him to the hospital wing; you go tell Professor McGonagall what happened―"

"No!" Harry rasped out, shaking, sitting up. "I'm fine, I… don't need the hospital…wing!" He was panting, his chest heaving with the effort of speaking Ron, your father… he's… he's been attacked…"

"Harry, mate," said Ron uncertainly, "You were just dreaming…"

"I wasn't! …wasn't normal… I was there, I saw it…. I _did_ it." Ron stared at him as he shivered feverishly. In a moment, he retched again and Ron leapt back out of the way. "Really, Ron…" he said, wiping his mouth as he recovered, "we need to find out where he is― he's bleeding like mad― I was― it was a huge snake…" He attempted to get up, but Naruto held him back with the slightest touch.

"Wait until Professor McGonagall gets here," he said firmly. It was only a minute or two before said professor arrived, looking frazzled at being woken up at the late hour at which this was transpiring. Harry pleaded with her, desperately trying to convince her that it was more than a dream.

"I swear!" he cried, his voice rising with hysteria, "I saw it happen! I'm not mad!"

"I believe you, Mr. Potter. We need to see the headmaster immediately."

* * *

Harry had never been carried bridal-style by a large-chested girl before. In fact, he was happy they found one strong enough to run so fast while doing so.

He was mildly aware that his thoughts were feverish and confused, but this didn't matter as long as he was able to speak with Professor Dumbledore as soon as possible. However, this confusion was not aided by the speed at which the walls and paintings of the hallways were passing by them. Couldn't the school stay _still _for once?

Naruto, Ron, and the Gryffindor head of house followed closely behind, though they did not move at the same inhuman speed. They reached the stone gargoyle guarding the headmaster's office a moment after Usagi did, just in time to supply the password and run up the spiraling stairs to the office above.

In the next moments, Harry explained as much as he was able to, speaking with a sense of urgency to show just how sure he was that it had been no ordinary dream. Dumbledore ended up sending three paintings of former headmasters to their corresponding portraits in the Ministry, in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies, and at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. They confirmed what had happened and sent out the alert.

Apparently, they'd be spending Christmas at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.

* * *

1. Large portions of the preceding section (as well as parts of others) contain directly quoted or paraphrased sections of the 20th and 21st chapters of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, © J.K. Rowling. I do not claim to own these sections. And Jeebus, Hagrid's dialect is irritating to type…

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	18. Seeing Sense

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Ooh, has a crossover option now… this is, obviously, where this story is now, since it belongs there.

"Speaking"

_Thinking, writing_

**Warnings: **lots of teenage boy "woe-is-me" syndrome, from Harry this time. And some OOC-ness, I suppose.

Whoo, Chapter 17! My lucky number!

* * *

**Last Time:** _Naruto, Ron, and the Gryffindor head of house followed closely behind, though they did not move at the same inhuman speed. They reached the stone gargoyle guarding the headmaster's office a moment after Usagi did, just in time to supply the password and run up the spiraling stairs to the office above._

_In the next moments, Harry explained as much as he was able to, speaking with a sense of urgency to show just how sure he was that it had been no ordinary dream. Dumbledore ended up sending three paintings of former headmasters to their corresponding portraits in the Ministry, in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies, and at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. They confirmed what had happened and sent out the alert. _

_Apparently, they'd be spending Christmas at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix._

* * *

**Chapter 17: Seeing Sense**

The door to Dumbledore's office shut with a soft click, instantly silencing the frenzy that had occupied the space a moment prior. Harry was in desperate need of a Calming Draught and some Fever-Reduction potion, and so he had been sent to the Hospital Wing, carried by Usagi. The Weasley children had gone to get their belongings from their dorm rooms, as they wouldn't have a chance to do so later. The five students― Harry included― would leave as soon as possible, before Professor Umbridge had a chance to stop them. Minerva had also gone back to Gryffindor tower to calm anyone they may have woken up with all of the clamor.

With a weary sigh, Albus seated himself behind his desk, closed his eyes for long enough to take a cleansing breath, and turned his attention to the boy in front of him, the only person besides him who had stayed.

"Do you see the problem with this, sir?" Naruto asked guardedly. "Aside from the obvious issue of the attack, of course."

"Indeed, Mr. Uzumaki," the old wizard replied from above his long fingers, which were pressed together in front of him in a contemplative, prayer-like pose. "You are wondering about the holiday break." Naruto nodded.

"I was wondering about this already, and this seems like the best time to ask… Usagi is meant to guard Harry, while under the guise of guarding the school. Many students are staying behind at the school, so she can't simply abandon Hogwarts now. Plus, leaving and returning at the same time as Harry and the Weasleys would be too suspicious to those who are watching us― and there are _always_ people watching. Whether they have bad intentions or not doesn't matter. Someone could point it out to the wrong people." It went unsaid exactly which toad-like teacher he meant by that. Understanding, the headmaster nodded for him to continue. "The next choice after Usagi going with them would be for _me_ to go with them. I know you've figured out what I can do… But the problem with that is that no one else has. From an outside perspective, it wouldn't be so odd for an exchange student to want to stay somewhere else― we could even make a cover story about my staying with a host family. If there is a true emergency, Usagi and I are in direct contact. But I think the occupants of Grimmauld Place would really want to know the reasons I have for being there, so that option is difficult as well without revealing too much. But you agree that Harry still needs a guard?"

"Now more than ever." Dumbledore's eyes were drawn. Naruto nodded again, grimly.

"We have ways of being in two places at once, in a sense. But that's only a temporary solution. The illusion wouldn't last the three weeks of break. Now, Professor, as it's you who hired us, you have almost full command of us while we are in your service (1). So it's only fitting that that I get your permission for something like this…"

"You want to reveal your true nature to members of the Order?" Dumbledore raised one ancient eyebrow. Naruto blinked at the odd phrasing― "to reveal his true nature"― but didn't question that, or the odd spark in Dumbledore's eyes that said those words had been chosen purposefully.

"It seems like the only thing I can do. Normally, I would ask Tsunade-baa― uh, my leader, the Hokage, about something like this. But getting an answer could take up to a month." Naruto lifted a hand to the back of his head awkwardly, keeping his expression less serious in an effort to lighten the dark situation. "Considering the term ends in two days, I don't think we have that kind of time."

Dumbledore chuckled slightly, feeble joke though it had been. "By all means, my boy," said the wizened old wizard, "Do what you feel you must."

The blond boy gave a slight bow of his upper body that served as both a confirmation and a sign that he was leaving. In a moment, he had exited the office and descended the spiral staircase. Albus Dumbledore looked over at a cabinet over on one side of his office. That was where, he knew, his penseive glittered, filled to the brim with silvery strands. Later, when Harry was safely away from the school, he had some memories in great need of re-viewing…

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Grimmauld Place, Two Days Later xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Harry felt nauseous, and quite like the meager breakfast he'd eaten that morning would soon rejoin the outside world. And he was sure his appearance wasn't faring any better than the way his insides were. But that didn't matter. There wasn't anyone there to see him. He didn't _want_ anyone to see him. The way they looked at him…

But they had a right to look at him that way, didn't they? After all, they all knew what Dumbledore thought about him now.

_Possessed,_ thought Harry, repeating to himself what he had thought many times that day, _I'm being possessed by Voldemort. Dumbledore thought so all along, and now all the others know as well. They're all downstairs together. Probably talking about me… well, good. _In his own head, Harry's voice sounded incredibly bitter. _Let them talk. I won't intrude on their precious conversations._

By then, he'd retreated deep into the confines of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, ignoring any calls from downstairs. From somewhere below him, he heard the doorbell ring and the screams of Mrs. Black's portrait fill the house. Whatever. Whoever had come didn't matter, as long as they left him alone…

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Same Place, Same Time, Four Floors Below xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hermione smiled awkwardly at Naruto as they waited on the front step of Sirius' house for someone to answer the doorbell, which she had rung a moment previous. He smiled slightly as well, pocketing the scrap of paper they'd used as a portkey to get there. Both were trying to ignore the vengeful screams emanating from inside the house. As usual, the muggles living in the surrounding houses didn't pay any mind to the strange ongoings in the secret headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.

A moment later, Mrs. Weasley cautiously opened the door, and then beamed when she saw that the bright Gryffindor girl had arrived.

"Oh! Hermione, dear, come in and…" As she opened the door more, she turned slightly and noticed that Naruto was there as well. "Oh, I hadn't realized you were coming as well. Naruto, was it?"

"Yes," the shinobi replied, keeping his voice pleasant, "I'll explain it all later. May we come in?"

"Yes, of course, of course," said Mrs. Weasley brightly, ushering them inside. "It really is quite nippy out. Poor boy, you look frozen stiff in naught but your school robes. Come on, we've got a fire going in the other room and you can put your things down here in the hall. And oh, Hermione, wait until you see…"

Naruto tuned the motherly woman out mostly as he looked around. By that point, the curtains around the screeching portrait of Mrs. Black had been forced shut, probably by Sirius, who had just disappeared into a room down the end of the hall. The house was mostly quiet, save for the creaks, groans, and occasional screams of terror that an old Dark wizard's house such as this released every so often. There was nothing out of the ordinary― at least; nothing more than what was _usually_ out of the ordinary.

As they proceeded down the hall, the air got warmer with both the heat of the fire roaring in the drawing room and the mood of the air therein. They entered to find a party-like atmosphere, where the fire cast a warm golden glow over everything in the room, in which Sirius―tangled in tinsel and garland, no less― was belting out Christmas carols and looking quite a bit happier than he usually did. He seemed to enjoy all of the company after having been basically alone for the past few months. Hermione ran over to join Ginny and Ron to aid them in placing enchanted candles on a tall Douglas fir in one corner of the room. Here was the picture of Christmas spirit (2).

Naruto took one glance around the room and disputed that.

"Where's Harry?" he asked casually. It seemed to pause the festivities for a moment. By their looks, most of those in the room hadn't realized Naruto was there.

"He's not feeling very well. Hasn't been since yesterday, I'm afraid," Mrs. Weasley supplied. From the way the Weasley teens suddenly found tree decorating the most utterly fascinating thing they'd ever done, Naruto would guess that this wasn't entirely true.

"We should go check on him," suggested Hermione, obviously picking up on it, as well. "Come on, you guys can come with us and help us bring our bags up to our rooms." It was a brilliant excuse, really, and the slight edge to Hermione's voice made it mandatory, not in the least bit optional.

Led by Hermione, who was walking at quite a brisk pace, Naruto, Ron, and Ginny left the warmth of the drawing room in favor of the long, dark hallway outside. Still showing off their apparition ability, the twins appeared with a crack just as the four of them reached a pile of Naruto and Hermione's belongings at the foot of the stairs. As they ascended the stairs, Ron and Hermione bickered continuously over the many heavy bags Hermione had brought ("What are you keeping in here?" Ron had asked as he carried them, "Rocks?" to which Hermione had responded simply "Books," and the two had been arguing nonstop over the need, or lack thereof, for education over holidays ever since). Naruto quickly put his single bag in the room he'd stayed in with Harry and Ron during the summer and the group continued on to the girls' room down the hall.

"Explain," Hermione ordered as soon as they were there, assuredly far enough from the ears of Mrs. Weasley. "What's really wrong with Harry?"

"He's avoiding us," Ron grumbled, giving one last heave of effort to put Hermione's bag of books onto her bed.

"Yes, but there has to be a _reason,_" said Hermione impatiently. "I mean, I know Harry's been… confused and… and angry a lot this year, but surely you could ignore that and spend some time with him. I mean, he practically saved your father's life!"

"And you're acting like he's got some contagious disease," Naruto chipped in. At this statement, the Weasley teens suddenly saw the floor, walls, and ceiling of the room just as fascinating as decorating the tree had been.

"Ronald…" Hermione began threateningly, "_Explain_."

"Well it's not like we've been avoiding him, so much as it is he's hard to get through to when he's like this. And after finding out a thing like that… well, he must have seen the looks on our faces. We were all shocked, and now he probably thinks we're all against him, or afraid of him or something."

"Something like _what_?" Hermione pressed.

"Well, it happened when we were at the hospital to visit our dad," Ron clarified, "Harry came too, of course. I think he was already on edge from having, you know… _seen it_. And after a little while of visiting, Moody came to talk with Mum and Dad. Kicked us out, of course. Official Order business," Ron's voice sounded disgruntled as he said this. The twins took the opportunity to cut in (3).

"Although a closed door―"

"―has never been a thing―"

"―that could stop us before."

"We just used―"

"―our Extendable Ears―"

"―patent pending."

"So you guys heard something you weren't supposed to?" Naruto asked, seeing where the story was going.

"I'll say," Ron indeed said, "We overheard them saying that Harry is pretty much being possessed by You-Know-Who."

Silence hung in the air for a moment.

"Do you… think it could be true?" Hermione asked tentatively.

"Dumbledore seems to think so," Ginny answered gravely. "But I don't know, it doesn't actually seem like it. Still, he's upstairs somewhere, alone and sulking. We should go find him…"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Same Place, Same Time, Three Floors Above xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Harry could hear them approaching, even over the roar of his own thoughts. It seems he was _not_ to be left alone. But who would want to spend time with him? Voldemort was in his head…

He threw another dead rat to Buckbeak, whose room Harry had decided to hide out in. As he watched the hippogriff tilt his head back and swallow the rodent whole, he tried to ignore the feeling of emptiness that had settled in his own stomach, despite the nausea he was still feeling from the news of his possession. Going to get food would mean going downstairs, where the other occupants of the house could see him. He'd stay out of their way, not trouble them with the impending doom he was carrying around in his head.

Whoever was approaching― several people, by the sound of the ever-loudening footsteps― was apparently not going to leave Harry to wallow.

"He's been hiding in there," a muffled voice said from the other side of the door. It must have been Ron, Harry deduced, "Ginny saw him go up to this floor, and there's nothing up here except for Buckbeak…"

"Ok…" said a another voice, accompanied by some shuffling from the narrow hallway outside. It sounded like Hermione. When had she arrived? "Harry?" she called, knocking softly on the door. He didn't answer, but the unlocked door swung open a moment later and Harry was greeted by his bushy-haired friend, followed by Naruto― surprisingly― and all of the Weasleys who were still attending Hogwarts. "Harry," she repeated, "I heard what happened."

"The why are you here?" Harry asked quietly as the group settled around him. The way he was surrounded unnerved him, as if he was cut off from escape. Then again, maybe that was the point. "I shouldn't think anyone would want to be anywhere near me."

"Stop being such a prat," Hermione admonished exasperatedly. "That's such a ridiculous way of thinking."

"But He's in my _head_," Harry replied sharply, really looking up at those around him for the first time since they'd arrived.

"Ignoring the fact that none of us here actually think he has any control over you," Ginny stated, taking charge of the conversation, "We don't really care about that. We weren't trying to avoid you, Harry. Even if He does have some connection with you, we'll still stick by you. All of us."

Harry flicked his gaze around the room again at each of the people in the room, still vaguely wondering why Naruto was a part of it, and then cast his eyes towards the floor again, silent.

"Listen, Harry," Naruto said, speaking for the first time since Harry had seen him there. This seemed to surprise the others in the room, as well. "I've been in a similar place to where you are right now, and I can guess what you're thinking… but those hate-filled gazes you think are staring back at you? I've seen those before in my life― but never here, never by any of these people around you." He indicated towards the other teens in the room, who nodded reassuringly. "You have people surrounding you who care about you, and don't want to see you get hurt. I know if I didn't have people around me who cared, then I probably wouldn't―" He cut off abruptly, not really wanting to know where that sentence was headed. "Well, anyway, just thought you should know that." Naruto smiled and, though there was a touch of sadness behind it, it was bright and genuine.

Harry's head twitched up a bit, but he still didn't say anything.

"So what do you say?" asked Hermione, "Will you come back downstairs with us?"

After a brief pause, Harry shook his head slightly. "I still don't think they'll want to see me."

Naruto sighed. Well, if words weren't going to through to him… He stood from where he had been crouched with an agitated, "And on that note…"

Harry blinked, finding himself swiftly suspended in the air. But he hadn't spontaneously developed the gift of flight, and no one had drawn their wands or cast a spell, so why was he suddenly drifting smoothly out and away from Buckbeak's room, moving backwards and leaving the shocked faces of Hermione and the Weasley siblings following behind? He looked down, and discovered the answer to so bizarre a question.

Below him, farther down than where his arms hung limply in front of him as his brain tried to process the sequence of events, Naruto's feet moved in a steady pace towards the stairway at the end of the hall. Harry was presently slung over the blond shinobi's shoulder, descending down to the lower floors of Grimmauld Place. The gears in his mind clicked into place as he finally realized what was happening.

"What are you _doing_?" the Boy-Who-Lived questioned, his voice filled with indignation. By that point, they had already reached the first landing after one flight of stairs.

"My job, as far as I can tell."

"And dragging me downstairs is doing this… how, exactly?"

"I'm bringing you down to be with the people who love you, so you can see some sense." Internally, though he did not voice it, Naruto added, _And if I'm the one telling you to see sense… well, it's probably pretty bad._

"Why are you treating me like some little kid?" There went the second landing.

"Because you're acting like one." He paused for a moment, listening as Hermione attempted to explain Naruto's role to the very confused Ginny, Fred, and George. "Look, I'm supposed to protect you. And if that extends to protecting you from your own stupidity, then it's fine by me." The third landing passed them by; they'd be at the bottom floor next.

"I was perfectly fine up there. _Alone_. I don't need anyone to―"

"You obviously do. The others told me you've eaten barely anything since dinner at Hogwarts two nights ago… and it doesn't look like you've slept much either. You're likely to collapse soon." With that, Naruto rounded the corner made from the last few steps and stepped into the narrow hallway of the bottom floor. "And can you stop trying to wiggle away? If you fall, it'll probably be on your face…"

Down at the far end of the hall, Sirius wandered by, moving from the drawing room to the kitchen. He thought he'd seen everything, having lived in his parent's old house, but he was suddenly compelled to backtrack a few steps at the sight of his godson being carried― obviously against his will― by that strange foreign kid. The Black heir raised an eyebrow and stared at the scene.

As they approached and passed Sirius on the way to the kitchen, Naruto gave a brief but pleasant nod. Harry just looked disgruntled. Sirius tilted his head and crossed his arms, looking questioningly at the odd― though admittedly humorous― scene, which was soon followed by a line of one head of enormously bushy brown hair, and four heads of flaming red. Shaking his own head slightly, Sirius followed the procession into the kitchen and dining area.

Molly Weasley was already in the kitchen, waving her wand over mugs of steaming hot chocolate, a mug of which Remus was enjoying at the large wooden table. At the sudden entrance of the teens, the two looked up, identical expressions of confusion washing over their features.

"I was just about to call you all down," Mrs. Weasley remarked, sending the warm mugs hovering towards them. She looked at the bespectacled boy, whom Naruto was finally placing back on his feet. "Um, Harry dear, would you like a mug as well?" He nodded, accepting the heated drink, just happy to be back on the ground. He and the other teens, eager for the winter treat, settled around the table. The kitchen was quiet for a moment, in which all could be heard was the sound of the occupants sipping and blowing on their hot chocolate. The confused looks had yet to leave the faces of the adults.

"I haven't been exactly honest," Naruto stated without preamble. "And you're obviously wondering why I was just carrying Harry like he was too delicate to walk" ―there was a snort from Fred and George's direction, at which Harry glared, though there was no real effort behind it now that he was enjoying his sweet beverage― "Or even why I'm here in the house to begin with."

"Uh, no… well…" Mrs. Weasley struggled, trying to show her hospitality, despite some burning questions, "Of course you're welcome here, dear."

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement, "Well, telling you sooner may have made things go more smoothly, but I wasn't supposed to before, and I hadn't thought to ask Dumbledore's opinion on the matter…"

"Dumbledore?" Remus repeated, a thoughtful look coming over his face.

"Yeah… The truth is, I'm not only here to be a Hogwarts student, or even only to act as the translator for the guard… because I _am _a guard."

There. His secret role in the mission was out, now, floating heavily above their heads as if someone had written the words in the air.

"But… you're just a child!" said a shocked Mrs. Weasley. "You're no older than Harry, or Ron."

"We grow up fast where I'm from," he responded simply, "Currently, Usagi is still at Hogwarts, as she is focused on a broader guarding. Plus, we have to keep up the illusion that she's only there as a precautionary element… The real goal, as Dumbledore has told you, is keeping Harry safe"―said boy grumbled something about not needing a baby sitter, but Naruto only gave a slight eye roll, and continued― "And that's where I come in. We knew the person who was to be closer to the charge― that's you, Harry, even if it bugs you― was going to have to pose as a student. I was the choice for that role."

"So…" said Remus, in the tone of someone trying to clarify something for their own benefit, "You were hired by Dumbledore?"

"Basically, yes."

"So, where you're from," Remus continued, picking up on Naruto's non-Japanese heritage, "They just hire people out? Like body guards, or―"

"Or mercenaries," Sirius finished. Naruto winced slightly; he didn't like the phrasing. Sure, that's pretty much what he was… but the word _shinobi_ encompassed that, and it was understood that killing was not the only thing they were capable of. Unfortunately, there was no exact English equivalent.

"Basically," he repeated, "Yes."

"That― It doesn't even make sense…" Mrs. Weasley tried to reason, "It doesn't change the fact that you're still a kid. Couldn't they have sent someone older? Someone who might be a little more skilled―"

The blond ninja cut her off with a slightly irritated sigh. From his weapons pouch, which hung inconspicuously on his belt now that he was unhindered by school robes, he withdrew one shuriken and one kunai, holding them both between the fingers of one hand. He looked over to a wooden support beam nearly twenty feet from him, which was away from anyone who might be hurt, and aimed for the briefest of moments. In one swift movement, he sent the shuriken flying towards the beam, followed by another rapid motion immediately after that sent the kunai rushing behind it. With the dull _thunk_ of metal sinking into wood, the tip of the kunai stuck to the beam, pinning the still spinning shuriken to it through the hole in its center.

The effect was obvious, and immediate. The witches and wizards around the room had frozen in their places, their faces painted with various expressions of surprise, amazement, and amusement. Mrs. Weasley was pale.

"Wicked…" breathed Ron, having been the closest to the wooden beam.

About a year previous, Naruto had spent several weeks perfecting the flashy― though practically useless― trick. He was glad to have a use for it finally, and that it had had the desired effect.

"You can relax," Naruto said with a slight laugh, going around the table to retrieve his weapons, "Even if Harry feels like there's nothing he needs protection from, he'll still be safer while I'm here. There's nothing― and no one― that you'll have to worry about."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx London xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Itachi knew he'd picked the right place to stay. While down in the bar of the Leaky Cauldron, pretending to be just any other ordinary inn customer, he listened to all of the conversations around him. Finally, after having been in the place for far too long, in his opinion, he heard exactly what he'd been waiting for.

"…he was just the _nicest_ young man I've met in long time," a middle-aged woman was saying from a nearby table. "And a ray of sunshine, he was, with bright blue eyes and blond hair that simply_ glowed._ It was like he was the physical embodiment of the side of the Light."

"Aren't you a little old to have crushes on _young_ men?" her companion teased. Itachi was thankful to have come across such loose-lipped women…

"Oh, stop," she laughed back. She then hushed her tone a bit, but was still speaking loud enough for anyone who was paying attention to hear. Itachi paid close attention. "Listen, I shouldn't be telling you this… but he told me he was undercover for Dumbledore. He needed some information about a dangerous looking book."

"And, what happened?"

"It was strange, I couldn't find any record of the book. Oh!" he tone got louder again. "But he was just _so_ polite. He even bought our one of most expensive quills after I helped him."

Itachi had heard enough. He turned to face the two witches.

"Excuse me," he said, relying on the politeness that the first woman seemed so fond of. "I couldn't help but overhearing. This boy you're talking about… did he happen to have strange markings on his cheeks?"

She thought for a moment. "Now that you mention it," she said, "It seems he did. Do you know him?"

"He's a friend of mine," Itachi lied easily, "But I'm not from around here, so I don't quite know how to find him."

"Well, he was a student, over at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. That's right near the town where I live."

"Oh, perfect," Itachi squeezed as much false cheerful emotion into his voice as he was able. "Would you mind taking me there when you go back?"

"Not at all, young man. Any friend of a friend of Dumbledore's is a friend of mine…"

* * *

1. I'd just like to note that (if I ever finish this freaking thing) I will write a sequel that takes place in what would be Harry's 7th year. This statement (you hired us, you have command, etc) will be the basis of that sequel. Other than this, however, I don't have any idea of the plot yet. Yet, somehow, I've already written the first chapter…

2. I've always wondered why the witches and wizards celebrate Christian holidays… because it's plot-convenient, perhaps?

3. Jeebus, the twins are so fun to write.

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	19. Enemy of Enemies

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Hey guys. It's summer again, and that means more time to write, woot! Also, I enjoy this chapter's title and the multiple ways it can be interpreted….

"Speaking"

"_Speaking in Japanese_"

_Thinking, writing_

**Warnings: **again, I'm kind of assuming that you've read the book, not just seen the movie. I refer to parts that they (needlessly!) cut out. Also, I'm hoping the parts with Itachi aren't too much of spoilers, but they might be, so read at your own risk…

* * *

**Last Time:** _Following Mr. Weasley's attack at the ministry, the group goes to Grimmauld Place. Harry learns that Dumbledore and the Order believe that Voldemort is possessing him through his scar and he closes himself off from everyone. Naruto tries to force some sense into him and, in doing so, reveals his status as guard to the rest of those staying at Grimmauld Place._

_In London, Itachi convinces a woman to take him to Hogsmeade, just a few steps away from Hogwarts. _

* * *

**Chapter 18: Enemy of Enemies**

"Explain this to me again," said Tonks, leaning back in her chair and looking at him, "You're a body guard, even though you're this young?"

"I've been qualified since I was 12," Naruto stated, repeating what he already had several times.

"I don't understand," said another Order member, whose name Naruto didn't know. "What is it exactly that you _do_?"

Naruto sighed. "I'm trained in the arts of ninjutsu, genjustu, and taijutsu. That's 'magic' powered physical and illusionary techniques, as well as regular martial arts-style fighting."

"So…. You aren't a wizard."

"I guess I technically am one now… but where I'm from, were _like_ wizards. But no."

"I don't understand how someone as young as you―" Mrs. Weasley began.

"I probably have had more experience in the last two years than any of you have had in your entire lives. No, not probably. I'm sure of it."

"Someone I doubt that," Moody growled, his electric blue eye swiveling towards the blond shinobi. Opposing blue eyes stared at each other that way for a while, before the magical one found interest in something else.

"Obviously Dumbledore hired us for reason," Naruto concluded simply, wishing the old Headmaster was here to explain things. He looked around at all of the Order members; he could tell they still had questions.

As if answering some silent call, Dumbledore entered the room a moment later. He sat down at one of the empty chairs and placed the tips of his long fingers together, looking around the room at its occupants. "By all means," he said, "Continue."

"Now that you're here, sir," Naruto addressed the professor, "Maybe you can clarify things. The Order doesn't seem to believe that I could be Harry's guard."

"Oh, I have the fullest confidence in Naruto and Usagi's abilities," Dumbledore assured, "As well as knowing of a few other reasons why Naruto is a good person to have around Harry." He looked at the boy, his eyes twinkling knowingly. Naruto found it hard to hold his gaze. "And," he continued, turning to Mrs. Weasley, "You will be visiting Arthur tomorrow, correct?" She nodded. "Good. Naruto will be going with you."

"If you don't mind me asking," the red headed woman began, "What about Harry? And… You-Know-Who?" Dumbledore closed his eyes in thought.

"I don't think he's possessed," Naruto cut in.

"And how would you even know about that?" asked Shacklebolt, looking at him suspiciously.

"I may be trained in ways of spying," answered Naruto, "But there are those of us in this house that have a natural gift for it."

"How you overheard this aside, what makes you say that?" asked Dumbledore.

"I just don't believe he is. He doesn't seem like he's being possessed. Connected, maybe, but not controlled."

"So, what, you have experience with possession before?" growled Moody, his eye swiveling back for another staring contest.

"Yes," Naruto countered, not breaking the gaze. It flicked away again.

"I suppose that's a valid theory," stated Dumbledore, instantly easing the tension. "Now, we have other matters to attend to. Kingsley, did you find out what the Minister…"

* * *

It was a bit awkward. Harry and Naruto didn't really want to talk about it.

It was Christmas, and they'd gone to visit Mr. Weasley in his ward at St. Mungo's. But when Harry had left, offering to get the rest of the group drinks, and Naruto had gone with him― "You don't have to follow me everywhere, you know!" "In a place like Hogwarts, no, but in a place like London I'm not leaving your side"― they'd come across something that they hadn't been expecting. Gilderoy Lockheart had dragged Harry down a corridor to the closed ward for long-term patients, wanting to sign some autographs for him, and Neville was there, visiting his parents.

The round boy had obviously embarrassed that people he knew saw his parents in such a state. Knowing he could trust Harry and Naruto, however, as he knew Harry's situation and Naruto had provided that he grew up without parents as well, Neville revealed that his parents had been tortured nearly to death by Bellatrix Lestrange, a Death Eater from Voldemort's inner circle. He knew Harry and Naruto wouldn't tell anyone; the three had somehow developed a kind of silent connection.

Having returned to Grimmauld Place, the group found presents under the Christmas tree that hadn't been there when they'd left early that morning. Naruto received a set of wizard's chess from Ron, a muggle movie about ninja from Harry (he was sure Naruto would get a few laughs out of it), stationary from Hermione― "Because you can never have too much stationary!"― and even a classic sweater from Mrs. Weasley. She'd chosen to knit him one that had no letter, but was bright, attention-grabbing orange. Naruto gave the trio gifts as well. Hermione was eager to try out the special quill that he gave her, as were Harry and Ron with the miniature Quidditch teams he'd given each of them that could be trained and played against each other.

He found himself laughing as he pulled on the sweater and watch as Ron failed in his attempt to coach his Quidditch team. It was strange; he'd bought the gifts out of his own mission expenses, even though he had not been required to do so. These were not just the people he was sworn to protect, he realized. They were also his friends.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Hogsmeade xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Itachi spent the week at the Hog's Head Inn. He was biding his time; it wouldn't be long until the students returned to Hogwarts.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Extra lessons with Snape," Harry grumbled under his breath as they entered the great hall the morning of the new term.

"For potions?" Hermione asked.

"No, but that's what we're telling everyone. What he's really going to be doing is teaching me to defend my mind from Voldemort."

Shuddering slightly, Ron commented, "I wouldn't want that slimy git slithering around in _my_ head."

"Which git?" Naruto asked.

"Either one," he replied.

Usagi nodded slightly to Naruto as he sat down in his usual spot at the Gryffindor table. That was both a greeting and a signal that all was well. No threats were detected.

* * *

Itachi had seen them getting off the train. But it would be impractical to confront them there. He would go directly to the school, and he would wait until it was dark.

* * *

Dinner at Hogwarts began as it always did, with loud chatter and the clinking of plates and glasses. The students were quickly getting back into their usual rhythms, going to classes, complaining about said classes, and partaking in the latest juicy gossip. And despite the little skirmishes and drama that may have occurred over or because of the Christmas break― "You went to see that muggle girl you know, didn't you?" one Ravenclaw girl was accusing her boyfriend as Naruto passed, "You think that just because you live in a muggle neighborhood, you can forget all about the wizarding world while you're there!"― everything seemed to be running smoothly; normal.

But who was fooled by that? This was Hogwarts, after all… But for the _moment_, things were normal.

"So did you see the poster?" asked Hermione, taking a sip from her goblet. "There's going to be another trip to Hogsmeade in February."

Harry ducked his head a bit, his cheeks reddening. Yeah, he'd heard of the trip. It was going to be on Valentine's Day, and Cho had asked him to go with her. Naruto and Ron laughed, having been there during the awkward conversation between the two "lovebirds".

"Yeah," Naruto laughed, "We saw them."

Usagi seemed quite interested by this, having known the word "Valentine" from its use back home. She blushed beneath her mask, but approached Naruto to ask about this, under the guise of just greeting her translator for a quick word.

"_Valentine's day is not for a while, right_?" she asked.

"_Yeah,_" he replied, "_There's going to be another trip to the village near here that day. We'll have to work something out."_ She nodded. Though she knew that he meant they'd have to find a way to keep an eye on Harry, she'd liked to think that he meant something more by "work something out". The ANBU kunoichi started to walk away, back to her spot in the shadows to observe the Great Hall. But just then, something occurred to shatter the illusion of normalcy.

* * *

Vaguely, almost absentmindedly, though an Uchiha was never one to do things without thinking, Itachi wondered how they would react.

* * *

Naruto happened to be looking over at Dumbledore when it happened. One second, the old wizard looked perfectly calm, having a nice conversation with Professor Sprout. But the second immediately following that, his head snapped forward towards the entrance to the Great Hall, his face in a sudden look of concern.

And the second following that, the large wooden doors swung open, revealing Uchiha Itachi.

For the briefest of moments, Naruto's mind reeled. He hadn't sensed Itachi coming at all, and he'd even avoided detection from the clones he had secretly wandering the hallways. From the way Usagi reacted, she hadn't had any idea he was nearing, either. Shaking off that immediate reaction, Naruto stood from his place. Usagi jumped down from where she'd been hidden in the rafters and got into a defensive position.

"Fuck," Naruto swore under his breath, running to the front of the Great Hall to warn Dumbledore. The old man was rising from his own chair and the blond boy approached. "Professor," he hissed, his voice hushed and low with urgency, "That is a _very_ dangerous criminal from my village."

"How dangerous?" the headmaster asked, hoping to assess the situation.

"Basically, if he and any others from his organization have joined with Voldemort, well, and forgive the phrasing but, we're screwed. Usagi and I together probably couldn't beat him." The wizard's concerned look deepened. From the edge of his long sleeves, Naruto noticed the tip of his wand protruding slightly.

Itachi walked forward, his face as stoic as usual. Usagi stood halfway between the missing nin and where Naruto stood beside Professor Dumbledore, ready to jump in front of Harry should an attack go his way. She was poised and ready, kunai already drawn and waiting in her hands.

"As great as it is to meet new people," Dumbledore called to Itachi, keeping his voice calm to ensure the very confused students would remain calm as well, "I really must ask that you tell us your reason for being here."

Itachi paused for a second to reply. "Visiting an old friend," he said flatly and, to Naruto's surprise, in English. _Dead language, my ass…_ thought the blond ninja bitterly.

The Uchiha shinobi continued forward, and now Usagi was in his way. But his steps didn't slow. Hoping to drive him back, the ANBU kunoichi threw one of the kunai in her hands at him, aiming for his chest and hoping that he would try to dodge rather than deflect it and risk harming a student. He did neither. When the sharp tip of the knife hit him, he and his dark cloak tore apart into a flock of ravens, which, with the sound of loud caws and dark wings flapping, flew around the school's guard in a disorienting cloud. The kunai clattered to the ground a few yards behind where he had been standing as the dark birds coalesced back into the form of the Uchiha. The students, unsure of whether he was a threat or just pushy, found themselves amazed by the display of what they assumed was powerful magic. Itachi continued forward.

"_Unless the world has suddenly turned inside out, there's no way you're a friend,_" Naruto called to him in a warning tone. Truth be told, the jinchuuriki boy was torn; was he to allow Usagi to fight Itachi on her own, with the possibility of her or a student getting hurt, or was he going to fight alongside her and blow his cover, perhaps jeopardizing the mission? He'd have to wait to find out….

Usagi, having gotten her bearings again, spun to face Itachi. In a surprisingly forceful voice, she commanded, "_By order of ANBU Black Ops and Konohagakure, Uchiha Itachi, you are under arrest for―_" In a swift motion, Itachi turned slightly towards her and flung out his arm in her direction. The senbon that that motion released caught her in the neck and cut her off mid-sentence. She crumpled to the floor in a heap.

Naruto tensed immediately. It looked like he might have to fight after all. But before he could even move, Itachi turned back towards him and spoke again.

"_I'm not here to fight,_" he said, "_Nor am I under the employment of any organization, be it Akatsuki or Dark Lord." _Naruto relaxed just the slightest bit, but still kept up his guard; he could be lying.

"_Then why are you here?"_ asked Naruto, "_And don't give me that 'visiting a friend' bullshit."_

"_To put it simply, my brother is behaving like an idiot." _Naruto stared at him, noting that he was close now, too close for comfort. "_And I'm going to help you stop him before he gets himself killed." _

"_But why would you―?"_

"_I have my reasons."_

Naruto glared at him still. "_I don't trust you… why should I believe you really want to do this?"_

"Simple," Itachi answered in English, "Just helping out the enemy of my enemy."

With that, the clone that he'd sent to deliver the message dispersed into the flock of crows again, flying out the window meant for owls and into the dark.

* * *

(A/N: Possible spoilers in the next section… but I changed things slightly anyway)

"I can't believe we're even listening to this," repeated for the third time, "You're most likely lying about everything! You're probably still with Akatsuki!"

"I assure you I'm not," replied Itachi calmly. "I failed in that aspect quite a while ago actually."

Naruto glared at the man who looked so much like Sasuke. This was all so surreal, sitting in Dumbledore's eccentrically decorated office beside the person who had literally _hunted_ him in the past and had been the cause of Sasuke's pain. He was part of Akatsuki, even if he no longer wore the cloak!

"You have no way to prove―"

"Do you want me to help Sasuke or not?" Itachi asked flatly. That sure shut Naruto up.

"Mr. Uchiha, was it?" asked a pensive Dumbledore, receiving a slight nod from whom he had addressed, "Naruto has told me that you're a dangerous criminal. Care to elaborate?"

"That was the _story, _but not the truth." Naruto looked at him questioningly, wishing he could tell when the stoic man was lying. "It was an undercover mission," he revealed. "All of it was."

"All of it?" asked Naruto angrily, "Killing your entire family? Deserting Konoha? Joining the Akatsuki? You're trying to tell me that all of that was a mission?"

"Yes."

"Who would tell you to do that?"

"Danzo."

Naruto paused for a second; from all he'd heard about Danzo, it _did_ seem like something he was capable of doing. "Can you prove that?" asked Naruto, still unwilling to believe.

"I can't. But the Akatsuki realized my disloyalty when I followed you and Sasuke out of the Hidden Countries against orders. So even though I failed that part of my mission, everything I've done so far has been to protect Konoha."

The blonde shinobi continued to stare at him, looking for some indication that he lying, or that he was about to attack. But, as flat as the man's face and voice were, somehow he seemed… _sincere_. Naruto wouldn't trust him entirely, but he wouldn't discount the possibility that he was telling the truth.

"If you are truly dedicated to the cause," said Dumbledore, "A matter that can be explored further, then I'm sure we can work something out. For the time being, I will allow you to remain in the castle. Mr. Uzumaki, you are dismissed."

Naruto nodded and stood, exiting the headmaster's office. He needed to go speak with Usagi immediately.

* * *

Hinata stared up at the vaulted ceiling of the Hospital Wing, where she'd been resting after the paralyzing strike she'd taken during the fight. When Madame Pomfrey had carefully removed the senbon from her neck, she's been strong enough to walk from the Great Hall and up one flight of stairs, but not beyond that. Naruto had carried her the rest of the way.

She was now marveling at the action that had taken her down so quickly. The speed, the accuracy… it was frightening. She was also, however, recalling Naruto's actions. The strength, the caring… it was… it was… Her ears perked to the sound of the Hospital Wing doors opening. A second later, she heard the sound of Naruto's voice calling for her.

"Usagi?" he called, looking around at the beds.

"_Here,"_ she called back from inside the curtain-enclosed space. Naruto opened the curtain carefully, and ducked inside. Hinata's mask was resting on the bedside table. "_That nurse knows how young I am from last time," _she remarked quietly, "_And she makes that clicking sound with her tongue every time she sees me now."_ Naruto laughed slightly, but his expression was still shaded.

"_Uchiha Itachi is staying in the castle,"_ he supplied as reason for his expression. Hinata sat up in surprise.

"_Why?"_ she asked, "_Is he hiding somewhere? Or is Dumbledore-sama detaining him somehow?"_

"_Neither,"_ Naruto answered, "_Apparently, he's on our side. Or so he says…."_

Hinata's pale eyes widened further. "_But… He couldn't possibly be telling the truth, right?"_

"_That's the weird thing; as reluctant as I am to do so, I kind of believe him." _He ran a hand through his spiky blonde hair, messing it up even more. "_I mean, I don't really trust him after what he's been until now. But it certainly would be a lot easier if he were on our side."_

"_But is he really going to stay here in the castle?"_

"_Dumbledore is doing something to determine if he's going to be loyal or not." _He sighed_. "I guess we'll have to wait and find out."_

There was a pause in which Naruto reflected on what that could mean. Hinata studied his pondering face.

"_A-ano… Naruto-kun…"_

"_Hm? What is it?"_ He turned a concerned face towards her.

Hinata blushed slightly. "_Oh… no, nothing. Just… thank you for earlier. For helping me up here."_

"_Oh, that," _said Naruto with a smile, scratching his cheek with modesty, "_It was nothing. We're teammates now; we've got to watch out for each other."_

"_Ah― yeah."_

"_So are you going to stay here tonight, or go back to the dorm?"_

"_No, I'm fine now,"_ she said, reaching over to pick up her mask again, "_The senbon just hit a pressure point vital to chakra flow. It took a little bit, but I'm okay." _She put her mask back on and pulled the hood over her hair. "_The nurse gave me a potion that helped, also. I'd wait to thank her, but she'd probably make me stay for another week." _Laughing, Naruto pushed aside the curtain around the bed. "_Are you going back to the dorm?" _she asked.

"_Not right away, I need to stop by the library first. Homework on the first day back… and I thought the academy was brutal…"_

* * *

As Naruto was returning to the common room with a library book in tow for his essay on the Centaur Uprising of 1593, he ran into Harry. The boy wizard was looking absolutely miserable; Naruto remembered that tonight was his first night of Occlumency training. Quietly, he wished his charge good luck as he entered the portrait hole, knowing that he had a clone wandering around in ANBU gear somewhere in the dungeons to help if there was any trouble. Harry returned only a bitter smile.

When he entered the common room, he found himself bombarded with questions, most of which he hadn't yet thought of a cover story for yet.

"Sorry, sorry," he said at last, after fending off a question from an excited-looking second-year girl about whether Itachi was Naruto's jilted ex-lover. "I really have an essay to finish…" With that, he made his escape to the fifth-year boys' dorm to finish his homework― and his cover story― in peace.

Usagi took the opportunity to enact her plan.

The inability to speak English was becoming a _serious _hindrance. It was fine when she thought only Naruto was capable of being the translator, but, lately, it seemed like more and more people from the Hidden Continent were able to. First Gaara, then Sasuke, and now Itachi. It would be so much easier if she could do the same― not to mention that it would allow her to converse with people a bit more. Luckily, there was a temporary way around learning…

Fred and George were in the middle of good-naturedly pestering the portrait of a teenage girl in the common room to flash them a bit of skin when they were suddenly met with the eerily white rabbit mask of the Hogwarts guard.

"You know, Fred…"

"Yes, George?"

"Do you suppose she could tell what we were doing?"

"Not sure if joking can be translated…"

Usagi pointed to them, and then began miming something. The twins exchanged a look, and then looked back and the strange movements of the ANBU kunoichi.

"I think she's trying to ask for something, Fred."

"I believe you're right, George."

"Hm… any idea what it is?"

"Looks like she's pointing to a stick…"

"A broom?"

"A wand… she lost her wand!"

"Does she _have _a wand?"

"Good point…"

"What's she doing now?"

"Looks like she's indicating something round…"

"Cake! Delicious cake!"

"Lies, George. All lies."

Not getting anywhere, Usagi was forced to lift her mask the slightest bit, revealing her mouth. By this point, the group was attracting quite a bit of attention from the other Gryffindors in the common room― mostly the male half.

"She's bringing it close to her mouth…"

"So, something round that you can lick…"

"A hole!"

"You can't lick a hole, Fred."

"Can't you, George?"

"Good point… but I doubt she's asking us for a hole."

"What do you suppose it is, then?"

"She's making that movement, again, putting it close to her mouth…"

"It's Snape choking on a potion!"

"Draco Malfoy with an oral fixation!"

"Timmy's trapped in the well!"

"Be serious, Fred."

"Sorry… so, something stick-like that you put in your mouth…"

"Now _there's _an interesting thought."

Usagi mimed biting whatever it was she was trying to show; the male students flinched.

"…ouch…"

"Feisty."

"Hm… a corn dog, maybe?"

"The Whomping Willow!"

"The Whomping Willow _with_ a corn dog!"

"_Now_ who isn't being serious?"

"Well, you tell me something round on a stick that you put in your mouth…" He paused. "I say, Fred…"

"What do you say, George?"

"Wasn't she there when we tested the Blabbery Blow Pop?"

"I do believe she was!"

"Must be what she wants…"

"Step over here into our office, my dear."

They indicated for her to follow them the several steps it took to reach a table on one side of the common room, on which a box of _Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes_ laid waiting. From inside, they withdrew the familiar lollipop with the orange wrapper, emblazoned with the company logo in gold.

"Arigato," Usagi said with a slight bow, taking the candy when offered. She unwrapped it and placed the sweet in her mouth, still holding the mask slightly away from her face in a manner that left room for the stick, but still concealed her face. The students waited.

"I guess it gets another testing," commented Fred. The comment sparked a reaction from Usagi.

"Wow," she remarked, clearly impressed, "I understood that. Ah!" She'd noticed her own speaking. "Cool…"

With that, she wandered away, over to where Hermione and Ginny had been quietly doing their homework and Parvati and Lavender were gossiping, not roped in by the twins' antics. Ron, who _had_ come over, pulled his eyes away from the guard and looked at Fred and George.

"So," he said plainly to his brothers, "How long did you know she was asking for the Blabbery Blow Pop?"

"Since she lifted her mask, dear Ronald," replied George.

Over on the other side of the room, Usagi carefully approached the Gryffindor girls, knowing it was always wise to use caution when entering an unknown and possibly hostile area.

"Um, Hermione," she said, her voice slightly muffled by the mask and the lollipop, "I was wondering if you girls could give me some advice…"

* * *

I love writing the twins! ^.^

Meh, kind of struggled a bit with the Itachi parts, though…

I noticed that my hit count and number of reviews per chapter has been dropping off as of late… I'm hoping people aren't losing interest! Review please, I really love to know what you think!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	20. Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Been away for vacation (two weeks away, one week home, and then away again), but I just love this story so much, I wrote almost all of it while away. You should feel pretty special right about now.

…unfortunately, the power cord to my laptop broke (again! D:) so I had to switch to my old, bluescreen-prone desktop computer. Typing the rest of this chapter took three times as long as it should have…

"Speaking"

"_Speaking in Japanese_"

_Thinking, writing, flashback and/or dream (when preceded by - -) …all the flashbacks in this chapter are dreams…_

**Warnings: **it's all about hormones. Also, in relation to this, I've decided something about Naruto and Sasuke― and it's a **major** revelation. More details will come within and after the chapter… And I'm sorry to those of you who don't like NaruHina, but this is one of the few chapters where it's featured, along with the next one (though after that it will take a back seat). Also, some of the things Usagi does in this chapter are _supposed_ to be mistakes. Keep that in mind. And― bah, too many warnings for words. Let's just say if you've made it this far, you'll _probably_ make it through this chapter.

* * *

**Last Time:** _Usagi carefully approached the Gryffindor girls, knowing it was always wise to use caution when entering an unknown and possibly hostile area._

"_Um, Hermione," she said, her voice slightly muffled by the mask and the lollipop, "I was wondering if you girls could give me some advice…"_

* * *

**Chapter 19: Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls**

Ron looked over at the group of Gryffindor-girls-plus-Usagi, huddled together and talking in excited, yet intelligible, voices. He gulped, paling. Bad things happened when girls behaved that way. Very bad things.

"What do you reckon they're saying?" he asked Dean, who was standing beside him, mesmerized by the same thing (1).

"Dunno," Dean replied, shrugging, "Something evil probably…"

* * *

The Gryffindor girls stared at the school guard, amazed at the words that had just come out of her mouth. What could she possibly need advice from _them_ about? The rabbit mask stared back blankly.

"Um," Usagi said, confused, "Is this language thing working correctly?"

Hermione was the first to recover. "No," she answered, blinking out of her previously stupefied state, "It works perfectly. Fred and George are misguided geniuses… but I think we're all wondering why you'd be asking for advice from us," she voiced the question on the group's mind.

"Oh," the kunoichi responded quietly, "Well… it's about a boy…"

Lavender ad Parvati squealed, and then sat forward eagerly.

"You totally came to the right place," Lavender gushed. "We know _all_ about boys." Hermione looked away to roll her eyes slightly, but silently agreed that she _had_ chosen the right people to come to.

"So you like someone, then?" asked Ginny.

Beneath her mask, Hinata blushed. "Yes," she replied, just able to keep the embarrassment from being palpable in her voice. "I'd like him to notice me," she elaborated. Perhaps it was just that they could understand what she was saying but, to the girls Usagi was talking to, her voice sounded much less official and much shyer.

"Well," mumbled Parvati, "If he's got eyes, I'm sure he already has."

"I know," agreed Lavender," I'm _so_ jealous, I mean, just look at your body! And I'm over here being all pudgy," said the very not-pudgy girl.

"No way," the also-thin Parvati dissented, "You're totally skinny… I'm the one that needs to lose weight."

"_Anyway_," interrupted Ginny, ending the classic fishing-for-compliments routine before it went any farther, "Who is it that you like?" The girl in question turned away slightly, not really wanting to answer.

"Is it Naruto?" Hermione inquired insightfully.

"Ah!" gasped Usagi, "How did you―?" She paused, taking note of Hermione's slight smile. "Oh, right. You're the smart one."

"_Ever_ the smart one…" remarked Lavender, with a hint of sarcasm. Hermione ignored her.

"I could just tell you care a lot about him," she explained. "I mean, you work together and practically _live_ together, so those feelings are bound to arise."

"But you're worried he doesn't notice you?" asked Ginny.

Usagi nodded. "I've known him for a while, and he never has," she revealed, "I don't think he knows I like him as more than a… a _colleague_."

"Have you ever told him?" asked Parvati.

"Oh…" breathed the guard, "No, I couldn't…"

"So then the goal is," Lavender assessed slowly, "To get him to like you 'first', right?" The kunoichi nodded. Lavender thought for a moment, "No offense, but he's just a teenager… aren't you a little old for him?"

"I'm fifteen," the ANBU corrected easily, almost immediately regretting the slip upon seeing the reaction (2). Mouths around the small circle fell open.

"You're younger than me!" exclaimed Lavender. "Ugh, now I'm even more jealous…"

The girls continued to stare for a moment. Uncomfortable, Usagi began to stand and leave.

"I can ask someone else," she said awkwardly (though she had no idea who this could possibly be).

"No," said Hermione, once again the first to recover. "We'll help, we were just surprised."

"Right," agreed Parvati," Well, the first step in getting him to like you is making him think you don't care if he likes you."

"But I _do_ care."

"Of course you do," said Ginny, "But he's more likely to like you if you don't like him."

Behind her mask, Hinata frowned. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Boys are thick like that," Hermione said simply, glancing over at Ron. The other girls nodded in agreement.

"So," said Lavender," you have to dress in a way that will make you look good, but also like you aren't really trying too hard."

"And," added Parvati," If he usually sees you with your hair up, wear it down. Or, if he usually sees you with your hair down, wear it up."

"Also," continued Ginny, as Usagi struggled to keep up with the pace, "You have to play up your best feature."

Thinking immediately from a tactical standpoint, she automatically responded, "My eyes."

"Perfect," said Ginny, "Definitely try to highlight them." She paused. "He'll be seeing your face, then?"

Usagi nodded, then hesitated. "Probably. It depends on where we are."

"I would assume the Valentine's Day Hogsmeade trip," said Lavender, "Ooh, and if it's that, there's this really cute little tea shop…"

* * *

Naruto stared up at the red hangings above him as he lay on his back on his four-poster bed. Itachi being there disconcerted him. If the elder Uchiha were really on their side, it would be a key advantage. If he were to betray them, however, it could be catastrophic. Naruto felt that he couldn't yet trust the man until he gave good reason to do so.

For now, though, he would have to trust Dumbledore's judgement. The old wizard was in charge, after all.

* * *

Dumbledore's eye twinkled playfully as he regarded the school guard. She was caught him just before he was about to enter his office. But he could tell it was nothing urgent, and so took time to enjoy the rare moment.

"I see the Weasley twins have has quite the success in creating that product," he commented lightly, noting the stick that was just a bit visible and the way she'd addressed him earlier with no sign of an accent. She nodded, though a bit confused. Usagi had gotten all the advice she could from the Gryffindor girls and left the common room with enough time to speak to the Headmaster before the lollipop melted completely.

"What may I say brings you to my humble office?" the old wizard asked jovially, indicating the very eccentric, far from humble, room around them. She nodded, indicating that she was to take that as permission to speak freely.

"As you are in command of us for this mission," she began in her best attempt at a military-like tone (which still came out a bit meek), "I must ask your permission on several items."

A smile played across his lips. "Of course," he said, holding out a small bowl of yellow candies. "Lemon drop?"

"No, thank you," she declined, immediately beginning her requests while she still had the nerve. "First, about my mask… it's traditional for those of my rank to wear them while on duty, but whether or not we can remove it during times of leisure is for the discretion of the client. You, sir," she clarified.

"So you're wondering if I will allow its removal?" he asked lightly.

She nodded again. "Only in safe areas; in the dorms, or perhaps the common room, or…"

"Or?" he inquired his eyes positively shining with mirth.

"Well, that's my second request… While I would still be on guard while doing so, I was hoping I could have a personal day of sorts, during which I would rather not wear my mask."

"You've worked more than long enough without one, the old man surmised serenely. "Any particular day in mind?"

"February 14?" she admitted shyly in the tone of a question.

"Ah," he replied knowingly. "Well, I see no problem with this. As for the issue of the mask― well, that has never been a requirement for me. I trust you can make the decision as to when it's best to wear it, and when it is appropriate not to." He smiled and she nodded back, relaxing.

"Just one more thing," she said sheepishly now, feeling that the Blabbery Blow Pop was nearly gone.

"Yes?"

"Could you rephrase all of that as an order for Naruto to tell me, and not tell him I asked?"

Dumbledore's eyes overflowed with mirth as he nodded in agreement.

* * *

Naruto glanced around the common room quickly before he entered. Most of the first and second years had gone to bed, so he felt he could sit in peace without being pestered with questions about Itachi. He would have to wait until he spoke with Usagi and― however reluctantly― the Uchiha himself before he formulated a good cover story anyway. Besides, he had bigger things to occupy his mind….

He sat down on an unoccupied squishy couch by the fire. He'd finished all of his homework already and could now just sit with a simple book to read; he'd selected a book of short wizard fairy tales entitled _The Tales of Beedle the Bard._ Though it was just filled with children's stories― which he'd decided to read to pick up on the culture more― he was still finding it hard to focus. His mind was elsewhere.

Truth be told, he was thinking about Sasuke. The boy had dedicated his entire life― given up everything and seemingly turned his back on any chance of happiness― in pursuit of Itachi. And yet here was that same man, offering help to Naruto. _But isn't he the enemy?_ Naruto thought, _He's the reason for Sasuke's suffering._ He paused in his thinking for a moment to absentmindedly turn a page just as he heard the portrait hole open a ways to his left. _But,_ he continued, _for this mission, I'm with the side against the one that Sasuke has joined. Does that make _Sasuke_ my enemy?_ The blond teen didn't want to admit― even to himself― that this was true. In his mind, getting his teammate back was still a possibility. Things could go back to the way they were…

He looked down to where his arms rested in his lap, supporting his book against his bent knees. As usual, they were covered; his scars were hidden under the loose sleeves of his Hogwarts robes and under a henge. But physically― and, more importantly, mentally― they would always be there. Naruto knew there were some aspects of his past that he didn't want to revisit. But every time he though of Sasuke…

He was broken out of his mental digression when the end of the couch where his feet were propped sunk down with the weight of someone sitting. Naruto looked over his knees to find a tired-looking Harry.

"Aren't you thinking a little hard to be reading fairy tales?" he teased lightly, though his voice was heavy with fatigue.

"I got distracted," Naruto answered truthfully. "I take it you finished your lesson with Snape."

Harry nodded. "The man's a slave driver. All he's missing is a whip." Both boys fell silent for a moment, then twitched, shuddered, and laughed at the hideous images conjured to mind of Dungeon Master Snape. Naruto was grateful for the bit of humor to pull him away from those depressing thoughts he'd been thinking.

"You aren't going to sit with Ron and Hermione?" the blond asked as the thought occurred to him.

"Nah," replied Harry with a slight head shake," Just look at them." He gestured toward the other side of the room, where his two friends were sitting together on a soft red couch. Earlier, they'd been arguing over homework; Ron wanted help with his History of Magic essay, but the type of 'help' he wanted was what Hermione would deem as 'cheating'. Now, however, they'd fallen asleep over the class' textbook, their heads bowed low and almost touching as Ron let out quiet snores and Hermione breathed out in contented sighs. Harry hadn't wanted to disturb them (unlike the twins, who were busy snapping photos with Colin Creevy's camera for future blackmail). The two boys sitting on the couch by the fire smiled at the sight.

"So what were you thinking about?" asked Harry after a bit of time had passed. "Uh, I mean… you don't need to tell me," he amended.

"I was thinking… about Sasuke," the shinobi answered truthfully. He just really wanted someone to talk to, and, luckily, there weren't many people left in the common room who could overhear.

"Isn't he the one who attacked the school before?" asked a wide-eyed Harry, having the sense to keep his voice down. Naruto nodded.

"The man who came earlier is his brother, Itachi," he explained, assessing the situation he'd just put himself in. Harry was his to guard and, of almost everyone Naruto knew in the wizarding world, he knew the most the importance of secrecy. "He says he's on our side. But… well, I'm not about to relax around him."

"Snape says he's on our side, too," Harry said darkly.

"Dumbledore trusts him," Naruto said neutrally.

"Does Professor Dumbledore trust that Itachi guy?"

"He does."

Harry nodded grimly, and the two lapsed into silence again. Naruto closed his book, unable to concentrate on even the simple tale of Babbity Rabbity and Her Cackling Stump.

"You said you were thinking about Sasuke, though, not Itachi…" the Boy-Who-Lived trailed off, making his statement a question. Naruto cursed mentally. _Sure,_ he thought_, he picks _now_ to pull a Hermione and be all insightful…_

"Yeah," he said, turning to look at the flames flickering in the hearth. "We… have a history."

"What do you―" Harry's voice was cut off by the sound of yelling from the other side of the room. Apparently, a flash from the camera had awoken Ron, and he was now shouting at his older brothers for control of the pictures of him and Hermione. Said bookish girl sat up straighter and wiped a tiny line of drool from the corner of her mouth, trying to ignore the light dusting of color over her nose and cheeks. Laughing, Naruto made a motion for Harry to go join his friends, and the dark-haired boy happily did so.

Naruto's smile faded from amused to melancholy as he watched the group on the other side of the room, where Hermione was glaring menacingly at the twins in an attempt to get the camera. The scene reminded him of his days on team 7. And that, quite frustratingly, reminded him of Sasuke.

He'd been thinking of his former teammate a lot lately. In fact, thoughts of Sasuke seemed to permeate his every other thought, making it annoyingly difficult to focus on other things. He didn't want to give up on his goal of getting Sasuke back, but he couldn't help but feel like he was no closer to doing so than the day the dark-haired boy had left. A tiny part of him, way at the back of his mind, told him that he was, in fact, farther.

He looked away from the commotion on the other side of the common room. Memories were bubbling up to the surface again; memories he'd tried his hardest to repress, and had had little luck in doing. It had all started soon after the Chunin Exams and Orochimaru's attack on Konoha. The Hokage was dead; the shinobi of Konoha had just attended his funeral…

_Naruto stared up at the sliver of sky visible between the two buildings on either side of him, slumping against the wall of the darkening alley. It had been harder than he'd thought it would be to put on a brave face at the funeral. Everything seemed to be pressing down on him; the air itself seemed to have the aura of near crumbling. Something even worse was going to happen soon. He could feel it._

_He was near the red-light district again. He hated to admit it, but all of the commotion in the aftermath of Orochimaru's attack, he'd had little time for his "second job" and that had left him short on cash. He'd have to do some overtime tonight._

_Picking himself up from his spot against the wall, he wandered into what was by far the seediest part of Konoha. He'd walk that street for a while in his usual male form and, if that didn't earn him enough, he'd switch to his female form and move one street over― that was what he originally created the Sexy no Justu for, after all._

_But waiting for him on that road was someone he'd never expected to see within 500 meters of that particular area. Upon seeing him, Sasuke pushed away from where he was leaning against a telephone pole and approached his now frozen rival. _

_He opened his smirking mouth and said simply, "I've been waiting."_

Naruto's eyes opened. He had not been sleeping― no, of course not, that would be careless. He just simply hadn't needed his eyes when he could rely on his ears while he thought. Proving this, he snapped out of his not-sleep when the sound of the portrait hole opening quietly brushed against his ears. He looked up to see Usagi stepping into the common room in near silence. He realized the common room was now empty.

"_Finished patrolling?_" he asked calmly, betraying nothing of his thoughts from just a moment earlier.

She nodded in response. She paused, taking in his haggard appearance, which he was trying to conceal. "_Are you okay?" _she asked.

"_Yeah," _he responded, "Just tired."

Yes, he was tired. So, so tired…

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx In the Snake's Den xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (A/N: sorry to those who don't like yaoi… there is a little in this section)

Sasuke's Sharingan eyes burned in the dimly lit room. He was watching his opponent carefully. Each of their moves was carefully controlled, precise to the very finger. To the common observer, it would be hard to tell just who had the upper hand. Sasuke could tell right away, however.

Suigetsu made the tiniest of missteps, and that was enough to lose him the fight. While his sword was still in the air after a failed upward slice, Sasuke ducked under his arm and slashed through him cleanly with his katana. The boy splashed into a puddle on the floor; the fight had taken all of 45 seconds.

"_Aw, no fair!"_ the water ninja whined, reforming into his solid state again as Sasuke stoically sheathed his own sword. "_Come on, best two out of three!" _Sasuke ignored him.

"_Sasuke, that was so cool!"_ Karin squealed. The Uchiha teen ignored her as well.

Juugo said nothing; Sasuke ignored him anyway.

Suddenly, the torches in their wall-sconces flared brighter as the sound of a single set of hands clapping slowly drifted over the four-man team. Now with his normal eyes, Sasuke looked up to see Voldemort and several of his followers standing on the balcony, having observed that which had just taken place; the Dark Lord's lipless mouth curled into a slight smile. His long, thin, white hands ceased in their slow clapping and folded themselves together like a nest of pale, tangled insects. Sasuke stared up at him, his expression as blank as always.

"Rather impressive for a battle fought with little magic," the snake-like man mused, a slight tone of mocking behind the words.

"It would stupid to rely on magic alone and leave the body to rot, as so many in this world do," Sasuke remarked unblinkingly. Voldemort's smile shifted into a sneer.

"You'll do well to remember your place," he warned. Sasuke remained unfazed.

He was tired of it, tired of everything. Even living under Orochimaru had been better than spending any amount of time with Voldemort. Sure Orochimaru had been obsessed with him to the point where Sasuke was wary of taking a shower anywhere within a mile of Orochimaru, lest the snake-like shinobi be somehow watching him, but at least he had been _useful_ to Sasuke's ultimate goal. The snake-like _wizard, _however, had not yet provided Sasuke with anything that he would actually be able to use. The only useful bit of information he'd gathered during his time working for the Dark Lord was that he was able to see the so-called spells that wizards used when channeling their chakra if he used his Sharingan. And Voldemort had not been the one to tell him that; he'd figured it out on his own.

And he felt as though now was the time to get what he came for, or split away to figure out everything else out on his own as well.

"What exactly would my place here be?" he asked in a masked tone. Keeping his mind in perfect order while around the Dark Lord was proving to be a more arduous task than he had even originally thought. And he was just about done trying. "A mere follower? Did I not say when I first arrived here that I wanted something in exchange for my services?"

Voldemort's mouth curved upwards again, and he gave a small laugh. "After so many months, you're still under the impression that you're in the position to make a deal with me. It's almost… cute." His smile grew wider as he suddenly produced his wand and gleefully shouted, "_Crucio!"_

Sasuke had seen the spell used many times on Voldemort's followers when the man was angry, disappointed, and just plain bored. In fact, he'd felt it himself a few times, and it wasn't an experience that he'd like to have again, not so easily. So he was ready for it.

Sharingan eyes once again activated, he swiftly stepped to the side of what appeared to him as a jet of blood red light. With the ability to see what was coming, dodging Voldemort's curses― the wizard had tried a few more times and failed, much to his shock― was all too easy.

"I'm tired of this game," Sasuke said simply.

"You don't know who you're messing with, child," Voldemort snarled back, raising his wand for yet another attack.

"Likewise," Sasuke replied, his voice low and intense. With that, he stopped dodging and bowed slightly, allowing Voldemort's torture curse to strike him.

As Sasuke fell into burning, he still kept his thoughts sane for a moment. _Sure,_ he thought, _let him think he won. Let him_ _bring me pain. No matter what he does, I will not give him the satisfaction of a scream…_

_Sasuke could tell by looking, his teammate was about ready to scream. It was odd to see such an expression on the usually cheerful face._

_Though, Sasuke supposed, Naruto had every reason to be looking like that. The Uchiha boy had seen the direction he was headed in and taken an alternative route that brought him there faster than the other boy's slow paced had carried him. And now, standing before that boy, he'd shocked his teammate into paralysis with the simple words, "I've been waiting."_

_But then Naruto shut his gaping mouth, seeming to have recovered from what looked to be a mental panic attack. _

"_What are you talking about?" he asked in his usual loud voice. "This is a shortcut to where I live." Sasuke knew that he was lying, however. Yes, this area was not far from Naruto's apartment, but it was by no means a shortcut. He raised an eyebrow, a smirk taking over his features._

"_Taking a shortcut implies that you want to get somewhere faster," he said in a conversational tone. "I would think you'd be walking a bit faster if that was the case."_

_Naruto glared back. "Some of us are in mourning, bastard," he growled. "So maybe I don't feel like moving fast."_

"_Or maybe you feel like turning a few tricks and picking up a bit of cash," Sasuke said simply. His words appeared to hit Naruto like a physical blow, as the blonde jolted back a bit as if struck, backing into the wall of the building behind him. He opened his mouth a few times, but no words came out. "That's right," Sasuke continued, "I know all about your double life."_

_Naruto was finally able to force a word out of his dry throat; a cracked and strained, "How…?"_

"_I've seen you. I've known since shortly after our mission to wave." Naruto was staring wide-eyed, now, at a spot on the ground just a short distance from Sasuke's feet._

_Yes, he'd know for that long. And since finding out, something had been building within him. It felt like hate, only warmer. It had taken him a long time to figure out what this emotion was, and why he was feeling it each time he saw his blond teammate― why the feeling flared higher whenever he quarreled with the boy. But it was time to act upon the strange emotion…_

"_Sasuke, I… I mean… Please don't tell anyone…"_

…_now that he knew what it was…_

"_Oh, I won't…" he took a step closer to Naruto, their bodies now close._

_It was pure…_

"_But you'll have to do something for me…" Naruto was flush against the wall now, no escape possible._

…_simple…_

"_So let's make this…" Their faces were close now; Naruto's hot, panicked rushes of air collided with Sasuke's smooth, measured breathing._

…_unbridled…_

"…_interesting."_

…_desire._

_Sasuke crushed his lips against Naruto's own, with the force of passion, or lust, or… or…_

_Desire._

Sasuke found himself gazing blankly at the ceiling of his quarters in Voldemort's hideout beneath the Malfoy residence. His muscles felt sore; he was glad he'd learned to push himself immediately into unconsciousness when under torture from the Dark Lord. At least then he wouldn't have to be awake for the inevitable damage being done to his body. But, he thought as he sat upright, he wasn't sure why that particular memory― which he usually kept way at the back of his mind with the other thoughts he deemed to be forbidden― had chosen to manifest itself in the form of a dream as he lay in forced sleep.

Upon sitting, he found his entire team in the room with him, waiting. Karin was the first to notice that he was awake.

"_Sasuke_!" she cried, running to his side, "_Are you okay now? How dare he do that to you_!"

"_Yeah, seriously,_" Suigetsu contributed, "_I mean, what exactly did you say to the guy?_"

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "_Honestly, have you not figured out why we're here?" _he asked, receiving only blank looks and adding to his frustration. "_We haven't actually _joined_ him…the plan was to get power, and then leave. I reminded him that I wanted something in exchange for our services, thus the anger."_

"_Why didn't you tell us the plan?" _asked Juugo, speaking for the first time in quite a while. Sasuke switched to rubbing small, soothing circles on his nose now, not answering with the true reason that he felt they wouldn't be able to keep it from Lord Voldemort.

"_I didn't feel that I needed to,"_ he said instead. "_Regardless_," he continued, standing against the pain that doing so caused him in order to reequip the weapons that Karin had so kindly stripped him of, "_I feel as though our time here is drawing to a close…" _

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Back at Hogwarts, a few nights later xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hinata could see the surprise written all over Naruto's ever-expressive face (well, expressive when he was relaxed and allowed it to be) as he entered her tent in the Gryffindor dorms.

"_Dumbledore just gave me some new orders to pass on to you_," he said, his brow crinkling in slight confusion. She looked up at him silently with what she hoped was a mildly questioning face, not trusting her voice to hide that she already knew the new orders. "_He says that you've been working hard and deserve a day off, any day you choose... and also that he feels the mask isn't necessary in situations where you aren't directly on duty. It was all kind of out of the blue," he laughed, "Not that Dumbledore was ever predictable."_

"_So what exactly d-does that mean, that it isn't necessary when I'm n-not on duty?" _Hinata asked, stuttering a bit both because she was nervous about pretending not to know and because she didn't have the security that her mask usually provided her.

"_I guess that means you don't need to wear it in places like the dorm or the common room… If you feel we can trust the Gryffindors."_

Hinata thought for a moment, and then nodded. "_I… I think we can. What's the worst that could happen?"_

(A/N: Yaoi again… last time I'm ever giving a warning)

That night, almost as soon as he closed his eyes, Naruto began to dream.

_It must have been quite the sight to see― the two barely-teenaged boys of team 7 locked in a kiss that could only be described as fierce, only for the slightly younger of the two to forcefully push away his lip assaulter and take off into the growing darkness._

_Naruto couldn't believe it. Sasuke had kissed him. He'd _kissed _him. _Sasuke_ had kissed him! The thought was playing on repeat in Naruto's mind as he tried to make sense of it all. He slid down and sat at the bottom of the front door to his apartment, his heart beating loudly due to what he told himself was only the fast-paced run he'd used to get away from Sasuke so quickly._

Just why is that bastard playing with me this way?_ He asked himself, _Unless…. _He shook his head as if tossing the thought from his mind. _No, there's no way Sasuke could actually be feeling anything like that for me… _He shook his head again. He was so, so confused…_

_The world then shifted around Naruto, first growing foggy and then bursting into unnerving clarity. It was as though he was watching the scene before him from outside of his body. _

_After several days of avoiding any excess contact with Sasuke, Naruto had worked up the nerve to ask for answers. Everything seemed relatively normal, though, so Sasuke had apparently not told anyone else about Naruto's side job or about what had happened. But the blond was still feeling so confused after that kiss._

_The opportunity to ask presented itself in the form of Sakura being unusually late for their daily team meetings at the bridge. Thus, it was just Naruto and Sasuke. After a few moments of tense silence, Naruto spoke._

"_You haven't told anyone, have you?" he asked, his voice much more subdued than it usually was when he spoke to any of his teammates. _

_The Uchiha heir snorted slightly in response. "You would know if I did," he said simply. Naruto nodded slightly, choosing to look away from Sasuke, who was nonchalantly leaning against the railing of the bridge. There was another brief pause. _

"_Um, Sasuke…"he began tentatively, glancing back at his teammate, "What exactly do you want from me?"_

"_I don't want anything _from _you," Sasuke responded pointedly, turning to look Naruto directly in the eye. "I want _you_."_

_The bridge melted away from Naruto's feet, taking Sasuke and everything with it. He found himself falling freely, landing with a dull thunk on something soft._

_Naruto looked up from where he'd tumbled back onto his mattress. Sasuke was there, too, his weight pressing down on the blond and holding him in place as he kissed a trail down the other boy's neck._

"_Sasuke…" Naruto whispered against the tingling that Sasuke's actions were causing, "Are you sure we should be doing this?"_

_The dark-haired boy pulled back and smirked down at his prey, asking, "What's the worst that could happen?"_

_Naruto's world burst into blinding flames._

Blue eyes opened briefly, and then scrunched shut again. Naruto turned his head slightly, blinking away the spots. A sliver of sunlight had found the tiniest of cracks in the curtains around his four-poster bed and wormed its way over the sheets and pillow, aligning itself perfectly with Naruto's retina.

He sat up and stretched. It was Saturday, and there was no rush for the student side of him to get out of bed― in fact, it would seem odd if he did. He did usually wake up earlier anyway, but the tiredness that he'd been feeling lately had apparently caught up with him, and his body had decided to let him catch up on a bit of sleep. He could have done without the memories that his mind supplied, though. Some things were better off forgotten.

The whole ordeal with Sasuke had been locked away tightly in a tiny box at the back of his mind. Apparently, Itachi's presence somehow shattered that box. But now, Naruto knew that the entire experience was in his past, unchangeable. But it was time to move on.

The now fully-dressed shinobi walked down the stairs into the common room, finding by the number of people there warming themselves by the fire that it was around mid-morning. So he'd already missed breakfast, then, but he could wait until lunch to eat. He settled down in an armchair to watch Ron and Harry play chess, watching Usagi walk silently by, having just come back from her morning sweep of the castle. She went directly up to the dorm, not stopping for words.

Unbeknownst to Naruto, Hinata had been preparing herself for this for days. Even then, she'd gotten up hours earlier to calm herself down. Now, it was time for action. About ten minutes later, she descended back down the stairs into the common room.

A hush fell over the room in waves, radiating from where Hinata was standing― mask off and out of uniform. She was attracting stares from both the girls and the boys, though most of the latter half and only some of the former half were having certain thoughts to accompany those attracted stares. Whispers of "who is she?" and "she's gorgeous" and "those eyes…" and "do you think―" "―she'd think―" "―we're attractive?" wafted through the room. The comments washed over Hinata, having absolutely no meaning to her ears.

She approached Naruto, who had his back towards her, laughing at Ron's bishop and knight, which were arguing over who got to kill Harry's pawn. The three boys had not noticed the disturbance to the rest of the room. Ron was the first to do so, and his mouth hung open stupidly as he watched the Hyuuga girl approach.

"Ron," Harry laughed, "You're drooling." But then he caught what― or rather, who― Ron was drooling over and had a similar wide-eyed reaction. Hinata stopped behind Naruto, biting her lip nervously. He turned around and practically jumped out of his seat, going around the armchair to stand in front of her.

"_Hinata," _he said, his voice filled with surprise, "_You decided to take your mask off after all. I though maybe you weren't going to."_

"_Well, it _was _an order from Dumbledore-sama…" _

"_Yeah… I don't think this will do any damage, anyway."_

Hinata averted her eyes, and there was a brief pause between the two.

"_Um, N-Naruto…" _She took a deep breath, readying herself. "_I… I was wondering i-if…ifyouwouldliketogooutwithme." _The last part of her request was rushed, sounding like it was all one word. Naruto blinked in surprise.

"_As in, a date?"_ he asked. She gave a tiny nod. "_I didn't know you liked me that way…" _Her face turned a flaming shade of day-glow pink.

"_If you don't want to…"_

"_No," _he corrected her, thinking only briefly to his last relationship, the self-destructive mess he'd had with Sasuke. But he knew that this, if there was anything to it, wouldn't be that way. He smiled brightly. "_That'd be great." _She nodded again and sprinted back to the dorm stairs, a smile on her burning face.

_See, Sasuke?_ He thought as if talking to his former teammate in his head, settling down in his chair again to watch Harry and Ron and evade their probing questions. _I'm moving on. But, it makes me wonder… have you?_

* * *

Whew! Ok, I know I'm going to get criticism for several things in this chapter so I'll explain a little. But first things first:

1. I think I said it was Dean who didn't return to Hogwarts that year, when it should have been Seamus… or was it the other way around…? Meh.

2. Bah, skimming over some details, here… Hinata's birthday is supposed to be December 27 (same as my mom's, coincidentally), which has already passed in the story, and I probably should have mentioned it or something…. So we'll pretend her birthday is later. Also, telling them is just one of those mistakes I mentioned…

**PLEASE READ:** Ok, now the two things I think people will complain about: Hinata's mask, and the SasuNaru-ness. For Hinata's mask, I thought for a while about this and decided that, since Sasuke already knows she's a Hyuuga, they feel there isn't much risk to the students seeing her face. She'll still wear it most of the time, but this just makes things easier for later.

Now, the biggest thing: the relationship between Sasuke and Naruto. It started out jokingly, but I decided that, yes, Naruto will be bisexual in this. But he's going to be with Hinata now, and the SasuNaru stuff will all be in the past. This kind of relationship between the two will not be revived. And trust me, the explanation of their past together is far from over, and more will come next chapter. I wanted to fit that and Naruto's date with Hinata in this chapter, but it was long enough as it is and it's far too annoying to type on this computer, so I'm going to wait until my laptop is fixed to write more (it shouldn't take long).

So, what will the date between Naruto and Hinata be like? What else lies in Naruto and Sasuke's past? And just what is Sasuke thinking?! Tune in next time to find aout, and bring on the reviews and/or people chucking rotten vegetables at me!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	21. Love

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

*Rises from the dead*

Thanks for sticking with me! I finally have a new computer that actually works now (my dad has my old one, good riddance!).

I've decided to be unapologetic from now on about the subject matter of this story. It's too bad if you don't like NaruHina or a bisexual Naruto. Deal with it and keep reading, or find a story that won't bother you. I will, however, continue to be optimistic that the people who have read this far will continue to read. (And review, hint, hint!)

Speaking of which, I have over 500 reviews now (and 20 chapters)! *wiggle dance of joy* Thanks, you guys, for all your support!

This chapter, while a little short, came out with perfect timing. Happy Valentine's Day, dear readers. Here's to being single *raises glass in toast* and, well, if you aren't single… here's to making people jealous.

"Speaking"

"_Speaking in Japanese_"

_Thinking, writing, flashback and/or dream (when preceded by - -)_

xxxxxxxx special setting xxxxxxx

**Warnings: **Love *makes a retching noise*. Also, it's rather more Hinata-centric than is to my liking

* * *

**Last Time:** _"_No," _he corrected her, thinking only briefly to his last relationship, the self-destructive mess he'd had with Sasuke. But he knew that this, if there was anything to it, wouldn't be that way. He smiled brightly._ _"_That'd be great."_She nodded again and sprinted back to the dorm stairs, a smile on her burning face._

See, Sasuke?_ He thought as if talking to his former teammate in his head, settling down in his chair again to watch Harry and Ron and evade their probing questions._ I'm moving on. But, it makes me wonder… have you?

* * *

**Chapter 20: Love**

"You're telling me _that_ has been living in our room with us?!" Ron spluttered, grabbing Naruto by the shoulders and attempting to shake. "That… that―"

"It's called a girl, Ron," Naruto stated calmly, removing the hands from his shoulders. "You know, they have curvy bodies and they smell nice?"

"Well, _yes,_" the Weasley boy replied, knowing this was obvious, "But _she_…" He trailed off, not quite able to communicate what he was thinking.

"So she's pretty," Hermione huffed, coming over to join them at the couch they'd claimed. "I'm sure she doesn't want you drooling over her, Ronald."

"I'm not drooling," he mumbled, wiping his chin (just in case). Harry just snapped his own mouth into a non-gaping position and laughed.

"So you said yes, right?" Hermione asked excitedly. Naruto looked at her in confusion.

"Yeah…" he said slowly, "But how did you―?"

"Oh, please," she brushed it off, "It was obvious."

"What was obvious?" Harry asked, looking between the two of them.

"Naruto here has got a date for Valentine's Day," Ginny stated cheerfully, also coming over to join them. The blonde looked at her in surprise.

"What," said Ron, "Do _all_ girls know these things?"

"Yes," every female within a ten-foot radius replied simply, in perfect unison. Ron's eyes just boggled.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Valentine's Day, Morning xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hinata had never been on a date before. Well… technically. Neji had dragged her out numerous times, but, since he was her cousin, she didn't really want to count those as dates. Not that he― or their family― would mind if the two decided to get married and keep the bloodline close. And she'd been asked out by several guys (and even one girl) during Naruto's absence from the village, but she'd always stayed loyal to him. Even if they hadn't actually been _together _together. Regardless, she wanted to make that day, the day that she and Naruto would finally be going on an actual date, to be special.

She still couldn't believe that she'd had the nerve to ask him in the first place. Now she just needed to gather up enough courage to follow through with the date.

She tried to follow the advice that the girls had given her, she really did. But it was all so confusing… _Get him to like you, but act like you don't care if he does_. Well… had she already blown that by asking him out? _Dress to make yourself look good, but also like you aren't trying too hard._ Well, what does that mean? Hinata hadn't brought too much civilian clothing with her. So... would a simple, black, long-sleeved shirt do? It looked good enough, and she'd worn it to several of the outings Neji had dragged her on. And it was cold, so she wore jeans and put her usual heavy jacket over the ensemble.

So that was all well and good, but what was the other thing they said? Ah, right, hair. But… when she was Hinata, she always had her hair down and loose, and when she was Usagi, she pulled her hair back to keep it out of the way. So how was she supposed to wear it now? She settled on pulling it back halfway, leaving the bottom loose.

All that was left now was to play up her best feature. Her eyes already stood out quite a bit... she decided to leave everything as it was. She looked at herself in the small mirror. By the standards of what the girls had told her to do, it was a disaster. But there was no more time to try to fix things. It was time to go.

It felt a bit odd to be leaving the tent that she'd spent several months living in without wearing her ANBU gear. She still had a weapons pouch attached to her hip, just in case of emergencies. But going without her uniform really did make her feel naked; she felt the confidence draining away from her with each step she took through the boys' dormitory and down into the common room. She and Naruto had developed a plan that would allow her to walk around in the open without needing a mask. It all relied on the crafty deception that shinobi were known for. Only the Gryffindors would know the truth.

At this time of the morning, everyone was down in the Great Hall for breakfast. The entire castle was covered in little pink hearts that floated around and tended to latch onto people in hordes (Draco Malfoy could be seen swatting these away all day; the massive amount that followed him, however, may have had something to do with Fred and George) and feelings of lovey-doviness as well as overwhelming despair hung in the air. This was, after all, Valentine's Day.

Hinata took the long route around the castle, away from the usual traffic areas, using her byakugan to make sure there was no one else around. This needed to be believable. Eventually, she made it to the grand foyer in front of the entrance doors, where she deactivated the doujutsu. She stood there for a while, waiting.

After a few minutes, Severus Snape appeared from the direction of the Great Hall. Hinata had never cared for the surly professor; even without being able to understand what he was saying, the irritated tone of his voice and the way the students reacted to him was enough to tell her everything. But Headmaster Dumbledore trusted him, and the old wizard seemed, to Hinata, to be very wise.

Snape looked down his hooked nose at Hinata, judging for a few moments with one eyebrow slightly raised. But then he turned away from her and began to walk back to the Great Hall; that was her cue to follow him.

She was walking familiar halls, but for the sake of those that didn't know that she was, in fact, the Hogwarts guard, she pretended that the entire school was new and amazing to her. In some ways, she kind of wished that she hadn't gone without her mask in front of the students that had been in the Gryffindor common room that night in January; things might get a bit complicated with that. But she also felt as though she wouldn't have gotten this date with Naruto in the first place if she hadn't― she'd needed to do it as Hinata, not as Usagi, because her mask couldn't be her protection forever. And, when she thought of that night, she _still_ couldn't believe that it had really happened.

Finally, she and Snape reached the Great Hall, where the doors stood open to avoid embarrassing any stragglers who liked to sleep in on the weekends and wandered down to breakfast long after everyone else― the giant doors opening would certainly draw more attention that was strictly desired. As it was, several students were already looking at her when she entered. Professor Snape led her down the row between the tables to where Naruto was seated, pretending not to have noticed that she was there, and gestured to the blond boy with a look of annoyance (not that Snape's face was really capable of other emotions). She nodded her thanks and leaned over to tap him lightly on the shoulder.

Naturally, Naruto had known she was there. Even without ninja skills or having known the plan ahead of time, he could hear the way the students were back to their usual whispering, wondering loudly who the unfamiliar girl could be. The Gryffindors were no exception to this, though they knew who she really was. Fortunately, they seemed to know the value of secrecy, and the majority of the whispers were along the lines of "that must be her" and "yeah, she's the one we heard about," which really served to enhance the illusion that Naruto and Hinata were giving off.

When she gently tapped his shoulder, Naruto turned around with a flawless look of surprise across his features.

"Hinata!" he exclaimed, standing suddenly.

"_Good morning, N-Naruto-kun," _Hinata recited back, a little shakily, giving a slight bow. This was all in the script. Though, Naruto broke convention with his next move by pulling her into a hug.

"_I thought this might make things more convincing," _he explained, laughing a bit as a couple of little hearts fluttered down from the ceiling and latched onto the air around them.

"_A-ah, I see,_" Hinata squeaked back, face red from the shock of the sudden hug.

Hermione and Ginny, who had been sitting on either side of Naruto, moved over slightly to allow room for Hinata and Naruto to sit down.

"Hey, is this the girl you were talking about?" Hermione asked as though perfectly practiced (which, indeed, she was), for the benefit of those listening from the other tables.

"Uh, yeah," Naruto replied, laughing and scratching his neck in a bashful manner.

"Ooh, Naruto's got a girlfriend!" Ginny teased lightly, according to plan. It seemed strange to Naruto that so many people were in on everything, but it also seemed to be going exactly as they wanted it to.

"_Is anyone believing it?"_ Hinata asked quietly.

"_I think they all are,_" he replied, "_It helps to have a clone around."_

They both glanced quickly at the clone that Naruto had made to look like Usagi. It would remain behind in the school both to move suspicion of Usagi's real identity away from Hinata and to serve as an emergency messenger if anything happened to the school while they were away. But for now, in the hopes that nothing of the sort would happen, they were finally getting a well-deserved day off, and they intended to enjoy it to the fullest.

* * *

(A/N: Perhaps some spoilers… but they're from quite a while ago, as far as the manga goes)

Itachi sat in the room he'd been staying in at Hogwarts, reading _The Daily Prophet_ while drinking some of the tea a little wrinkly house elf had left for him that morning. Really, the wizarding world was a fascinating place. He should like to stay permanently, had he not had other plans.

Naruto had finally come to speak with him several weeks ago, after he'd been in the castle for a little while and had yet to make any trouble (and he knew Naruto and the ANBU guard had been watching him like hawks for the slightest sign of mischief). The young ninja had been obviously wary, though that seemed to be with good reason.

"_Prove to me that I can trust you_," he had asked the elder Uchiha.

"_Prove to me that you can't,_" Itachi had replied, to which Naruto countered:

"_You can't prove a negative._" Itachi had nodded, knowing the truth behind the words. "_Against better judgement, I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt,"_ Naruto had continued.

"_That's all I ask."_

"_What is your motive?" _Itachi had stayed silent. "_Or can't you tell me?"_

"_To tell you would diminish its meaning."_

"_Does it involve Sasuke?"_

Itachi had sighed, then, at the mention of his younger brother. "_It always involves Sasuke."_

Naruto's gaze had turned cold and calculating. Itachi had found it hard to believe that such an emotion could come from the idiot boy he'd been trying to capture during his years with the Akatsuki.

"_You're going to fight him, aren't you?"_

"_In due time."_

Naruto had gone silent for a moment more, and then said, "_You're going to let him win."_ It was a statement, not a question.

"_I will allow him victory,"_ Itachi had confirmed, "_But only if he truly has the means to be victorious."_

In the end, Naruto had decided that Itachi was not a threat to the safety of Harry and the other students. That made sense; it would place Sasuke and his brother on the same side, which was unlikely to happen anytime soon. And if he'd been after the nine-tailed fox, surely he would have attacked already. Thus, Itachi was allowed to stay, pending that he followed a few simple rules, such as staying out of sight as often as possible.

The resting Uchiha took a small nibble of the scone that the house elf had appeared with just moments after he'd thought to himself that a flaky pastry would go quite well with the tea he was currently enjoying, flipping through the pages of the wizarding newspaper without really reading anything with much detail. It wouldn't be long, now, and then everything would fall into place.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx In Hogsmeade xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Naruto and Hinata wandered through the streets of Hogsmeade, looking into stores and watching the other students run around― groups of girls giggling and looking flirtily at boys looking longingly back. They passed Cho and Harry on a date of their own, currently looking at a large poster in a store window that told of ten escaped death eaters, but didn't go to talk to them. They found Ron and Hermione entering the Three Broomsticks together, obviously trying to give off the "we're only friends" vibe, but failing miserably.

After a while of wandering― which, to Naruto, seemed aimless for the most part, though Hinata knew otherwise―, they found a small teashop, sugar-coatedly named Madam Puddifoot's. Hinata stopped before it for a moment before nodding that she wanted to go inside.

As they entered the place, finding it to be more sickly sweet on the inside than it had appeared on the outside, they caught sight of Harry and Cho again, sitting at one of the small tables and laughing over something. Their date looked to be going well.

Truthfully, Naruto wasn't sure how his date with Hinata was going. Without her mask, the kunoichi was still very shy. They'd talked for a little while about various things, but it didn't seem to be anything special. The little café they were in now seemed to be over-the-top romantic― now if only it wasn't so steamy and nausea-inducing. But this date was really for Hinata, as she actually been the one to ask him (he wondered if she'd had a crush on him for very long or if this was a recent thing from how much time they'd spent together). But he just hoped she wasn't expecting too much.

The Hyuuga girl seriously wished she'd been blessed with the ability to hold a conversation. As it was, she had always been very quiet and shy. Adding her formerly hidden affections for Naruto into that made that stuttering shyness even worse. She hadn't realized how different wearing her ANBU mask made her. When she was with him as Usagi, she had to focus on other things, not the way his nose crinkled when he smiled or how he'd play with his spiky hair whilst writing or― well, more things that she was unable to _not_ notice as Hinata. That was work, and this was personal.

With the couples around them kissing as though one partner was the other's air supply― with the exception of Cho and Harry, who now looked to have gone a bit cold― the very stout Madam Puddifoot came to take Naruto and Hinata's order. Madam Puddifoot raised an eyebrow as they discussed first in Japanese, but took their order of two green teas just the same. Then they waited; time was ticking by and the lack of conversation was a bit awkward.

In the next few moments, it appeared as though Harry and Cho had begun to argue. The Ravenclaw girl was crying now, and Naruto could hear the name "Cedric" repeated several times. Soon the couple was the center of attention, with the sobbing Cho speaking shrilly to an exasperated-looking Harry. She ran out, leaving him embarrassed behind to pay for the bill. The tea shop was silent for a moment. Then the couples went right back to their kissing.

"_W-what was that a-about?_" Hinata asked, turning back to Naruto as Madam Puddifoot set their tea down on the table.

"_Cho's boyfriend was the one who died last year,_" he explained._ "She got upset when Harry didn't want to talk about it."_

"_That's a-all?"_

"_Well, and something about Hermione…"_ He shrugged. The conversation fell stagnant again as they each sipped their tea slowly. Naruto looked out the window beside them, noting the way the light snowfall from earlier had turned into heavy rain. Then he made the mistake of sighing. Hinata squeaked something in response that he didn't quite catch, even with his good hearing.

"_Hm?"_ he asked, turning back to her. She was looking down at the table, where she was poking her fingers together absentmindedly.

"_I s-said I'm s-sorry," _she clarified. "_Th-this whole thing… I think it was a mi-mistake."_

He sat up straighter, surprised. "_No, it's― well, I mean, this place is horrible."_ Hinata seemed to sink in on herself further. "_What I'm saying is, this place is stuffy and I think we were having more fun outside."_ She looked up at him, slightly confused. But he was looking out the window again, deep in thought. "_Okay, I've got it," _he said suddenly, gulping down the rest of his tea. "_You don't mind the rain, right? And that jacket is warm enough?" _

"_Um… y-yes…" _she replied, bewildered.

"_Good_." He smiled, tossing a few wizarding coins onto the small table and standing. She nodded, though still confused, and threw back the rest of her now cool tea in a technique that Kiba had taught her during one exceedingly boring mission. Naruto laughed at the move and extended a hand to her as she stood, which she took a bit bashfully. Together, they swiftly exited the stuffy little room filled with tiny cherubs and couples snogging and ran out through the streets of Hogsmeade. Laughing, Naruto led her back towards Hogwarts; their hands never parted.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx In the clouds, above Hogwarts xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As it turns out, thestrals do not mind the rain. In fact, they love it. Even better, they enjoy flying in the rain almost as much as they enjoy flying while carrying passengers who laugh, scream, and mumble surprised obscenities in foreign languages as they dip and soar though the clouds. And the fact that they had the chance to do both in one day was enough to make even a dark, leathery, skeletal creature like a thestral whinny in sheer joy.

* * *

I took forever to update, and, excluding the very important bit with Itachi, it was a wholly pointless transitory chapter, I know. Even _I'm _getting sick of the fluff. Bleh. I promise I'll get back to the plot soon enough. And I hope the ending at least redeemed it.

Please review, you have no idea how much it's appreciated (unless of course you're a writer, in which case you know full well!)

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


	22. Going Out with a Bang

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******

Three years.

Three fucking years!

I knew the anniversary of when I began this story was in the summer, but I didn't realize just how long I've been writing it. I first published it in July 2007! I'm amazed.

Thank you for sticking with me through it all. Sorry I sometimes go a while between updates.

"Speaking"

"_Speaking in Japanese_"

_Thinking, writing, flashback and/or dream (when preceded by - -)_

Xxxx special setting xxxx

**Warnings: **Author was very tired whilst writing, read at own risk.

* * *

**Last Time:** Love abounds as the students of Hogwarts celebrate Valentine's Day.

* * *

**Chapter 21: Going Out with a Bang**

For a while, everything seemed to be going well― at least, as well as they could go under the circumstances. Harry continued to dream about long hallways and locked doors, and attended his Occlumency lessons in a vain attempt at stopping these visions. Umbridge's fat-fingered grip continued to tighten around the neck of Hogwarts, with Dumbledore's Army the only speck of relief. In truth, Harry shuddered to think of what might happen if Dumbledore weren't there to stop Umbridge from having total power.

Naruto was happy― under the circumstances. He and Hinata were officially a couple. It was an odd thought, given his splotchy past love life, that he could be in a normal, healthy relationship. However, he could also feel that something was coming… something dark. It was too calm to continue this way for long.

One day at the beginning of April, the last bit of security that the students of Hogwarts could still really depend on crumbled.

As Usagi went on her usual patrol around the halls of the school (with a few conveniently placed clones to cover more area from the shadows), Naruto responded to his summoning to the headmaster's office. He managed to get there without arousing suspicion from any of Umbridge's little toadies. Once inside, he found Dumbledore seated in his usual place behind his desk, long fingers bridged before him.

"I trust you're well, Mr. Uzumaki?" the old wizard asked pleasantly, though there was little humor in his voice. Naruto merely nodded, not wasting time with pleasantries.

"She's planning something isn't she?" he asked, to which Dumbledore responded gravely:

"I cannot speak for fact, but my instinct says the same. But… Tell me, how is our guest?"

"Itachi? He keeps to himself, stays out of sight. I'm all but certain he'll help us if―and when― Hogwarts is attacked."

"Good, we'll need all the help we can manage."

There was a pause, in which the old headmaster shifted his gaze to a few of the spindly instruments moving slowly from their places around the room. Naruto studied him for a moment, then spoke.

"You're going to leave, aren't you?" he asked quietly. Dumbledore nodded, closing his eyes in resignation.

"I'm afraid I must. I can no longer hold onto this school whilst the ministry has its ties here. They're looking for any excuse to be rid of me."

"…and you know about what Harry and the others are doing, right?"

Dumbledore smiled slightly. "Naturally. But, while I appreciate their efforts, you and I both know that it must end." Two sets of blue eyes locked together, as they had done in the past.

"Tonight?" Naruto asked; Dumbledore nodded. Naruto looked away, processing what he'd been told. There was a meeting planned for that night, and even though he knew that they would be discovered, he would do nothing to stop it. "What are my standing orders then? What will Usagi and I do when you're gone?"

"The contract will remain," Dumbledore replied, "Continue to act as you have. In the event that Hogwarts needs defending or if Professor Umbridge tries to expel you― as I fear she soon may― you have my permission to reveal your true purpose here. You must keep Harry and the school safe from harm. Do what you must to do so."

With one more nod and a quick salute, Naruto turned and exited the office.

* * *

Silvery, misty animals drifted around the Room of Requirement; there were far more corporeal Patronuses than Harry had expected when he began the lesson― even Neville had nearly succeeded in creating one. Though, granted, there weren't any Dementors around and a real-life situation would be much harder to deal with, under the circumstances, everyone was doing well. Naruto stood leaning against one wall beside Usagi, conversing lowly with her in Japanese. It was a shame; Harry would have liked to see what Naruto's Patronus would be. After a few minutes of observing everyone else, Harry decided to go talk to him.

"What's going on?" he asked when he saw the slightly concerned look on the blond boy's face.

"Nothing you need to know about," Naruto replied, turning away from Usagi to face Harry. He felt bad about what was soon to happen, but it was true that Harry didn't need to know what was going on. He would just get in the way.

Right on cue, as if someone had tapped into his thoughts, Naruto heard them approaching: Umbridge and her minions were on their way. Looking around the room, Naruto found it was easy to see who had been the one to betray them, as Cho's friend Marietta was suspiciously absent. Just then, Dobby― strange creature that he was― appeared to warn them of the impending doom.

"What are you waiting for?" Harry cried to those around him, "RUN!" and chaos erupted as everyone skittered to the exit. As he reached the door, Harry turned back to Naruto, asking, "Can you hold her off for a while?" But as he caught sight of the way both Naruto and Usagi were still standing by the wall unconcernedly, he knew he had his answer. Angrily, he faced the door again and ran out to the hallway to meet his fate. That moment of hesitation had been enough to prevent his escape.

* * *

"We're doomed."

It didn't matter exactly who had vocalized this sentiment, as it was the general opinion of all those who laid eyes upon the latest in a long line of Educational Decrees. This, being the twenty-eighth in a long series of nightmares, declared, by order of the Minister of Magic, that Dolores Jane Umbridge had replaced Albus Wulfric Percival Brian Dumbledore as Headmaster of Hogwarts. And with that, the last speck of hopeful light had been extinguished.

However, two even more curious additions to the wall of misery appeared shortly thereafter with the arrival of Educational Decree Number Twenty-Nine: Only fully human students shall be taught the ways of magic at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Educational Decree Number Thirty: Students expelled after having been found guilty of violating Educational Decree Number Twenty-Nine may be held indefinitely. These, rather than bring a sense of disaster to the school, only bred confusion.

That is, to all but a select few.

Naruto, who knew that this latest message was directly targeting him, had been expecting this to happen. Umbridge hated half-breeds, plain and simple, and (though he wasn't _really _a demon) he was sure she would use this as an easy way to expel him. And as for holding him indefinitely… well, he'd like to see her try. The most disconcerting part about this was the same thing that had bothered him earlier in the year, of which he had the scarred words on the back of his hand to remind him: how did she know so much? Luckily, he'd have the opportunity to find out later that day…

At breakfast that morning, everyone was whispering about the new rules. Everyone somehow knew that Dumbledore had managed to evade the Minister, the High Inquisitor, two aurors, and the Minister's junior assistant and escape arrest in a brilliant burst of flame. What no one could figure out, however, was why the twenty-ninth decree had been added as well. Were there nonhumans within the student body? The rumors ranged from there being a third year Hufflepuff girl who had supposedly been bitten by Remus Lupin to the existence of creatures called Knackgrabblers, which took hold of a host and walked around in their skin (the latter having been supplied by Luna Lovegood, who insisted that such things really did exist). There was even one wild rumor that the spirit of the most powerful demon from a hidden continent had been sealed into a child at birth, and that that child had grown up to be a ninja who was secretly undercover as a student of Hogwarts. But clearly every theory― especially that last one― was simply ridiculous.

Harry ignored Naruto as well as he could throughout the day. He knew Naruto had been under orders from Dumbledore― as that was the explanation he'd given, though Harry wasn't sure he could trust it― but he had yet to forgive the shinobi boy for not helping him escape from Umbridge the previous night. He questioned whether or not Naruto was still on their side.

By lunchtime, Headmistress Umbridge, as she was now calling herself, had taken to calling in "suspicious" students for questioning. Harry survived, and now it was Naruto's turn.

"Ah," she said when she saw him enter, a sickly smile spreading over her toady face. "Mr. Uzumawhatsit. Come in, have a seat." He took the chair offered to him, though he was fully on his guard. "I trust you've been notified of the new decrees?" she asked pleasantly, with the same venomous smile perched upon her stretched jowls.

"One would have to be deaf and blind to miss them," he replied, faking sweetness back at the old hag.

"Then I trust you know why you're here?" she continued, tilting her head in a mockingly sympathetic manner.

"I haven't the foggiest," he lied. Her smiled wavered for the briefest of moments, then resurfaced stronger than before.

"Let us not play games, child, for someone must lose. And I'd like to make this a situation in which we may both win. Would you like something to drink? Tea, pumpkin juice?" He looked at her suspiciously, so she continued. "I know all about your past. Even about the fox."

"How?" he breathed quickly. He hadn't exactly meant to ask that and certainly not in that manner, but in his shock he'd allowed it to slip out. Umbridge continued to grin.

"Are you familiar with this book?" she asked, pulling said book from her desk drawer and putting it before him on the surface. The gold lettering of _Witchipedia_ glimmered up at him from the leather-bound tome. He stared at it as it rested statically. "I'd say you are," she assessed. "It's amazing what a little information can do. That Granger, she's a clever girl, always asking questions. Tell me, how did your friends react when she uncovered the truth about your… nature?" Naruto didn't respond, but he could feel his anger rising despite his best attempts to quell it. He clenched his hands into fists; on the back of one, the words _demon child_ stood out from the surrounding skin.

"How?" he asked again, this time on purpose. She was right; the time for playing games was over. "How does this book exist? And why?"

In the face of his anger, her happiness only seemed to flourish. "Simple, Mr. Uzumaki. Many people come through the Ministry every day, by choice or… otherwise. And quite a few of these people have very useful information stored in their heads. Then it becomes merely a matter of extracting that information." She paused for effect. "What you see before you is not merely a _book_, but rather a direct link to the Ministry's stored files of each piece of this information." She paused again, letting her words sink in to the now silent boy. "There are very few of these in existence, but it was easy to get a copy into yours and Miss Granger's hands, though I do believe you'll find any copies you may have retained have expired into dust by now. But believe you me, Mr. Uzumaki, no matter how hard you try to hide something, there is _always_ someone who knows."

"And there are some things that no one should know," Naruto growled. "Information like that is dangerous."

"And valuable," said the toad, "So as I previously stated, there is still an opportunity to make it so we both may benefit from this situation." She folded her hands together, her look turning devious. "You see, Mr. Uzumaki, it will only take a word from me to expel you from this institution. However, I am aware that you also possess valuable information. Are you sure you wouldn't like any tea?"

"You think I'm going to fall for that?" It was more than obvious that she'd slipped something into the beverages.

She smiled again. "Quite clearly, you aren't going to make this information available by the usual means. You see, boy, you are close a few choice people who are currently considered enemies of the Ministry and you must know things about them that even this book cannot yet tell."

"So… you're blatantly asking me to sell out my friends with some information that you believe I have."

"I'm afraid it's the only way you'll be allowed to stay here in this school."

Naruto delayed answering, pretending to be weighing his options. He couldn't remember exactly what _Witchipedia _had said about him, but it seemed as though it _didn't_ know everything. And as he thought about it more, he realized that even the records in Konoha still had him at the level of Genin, and any traitors who might have sold the information wouldn't have known otherwise. Perhaps, if he was lucky, Umbridge really believed that he was here only as a translator and student. That meant she didn't know everything, and he could twist the situation to work to his advantage. He opened his mouth to reply, but instead―

_BOOM!_

The sound rattled the kitten plates Umbridge had decorating her walls and shook the floor beneath their chairs. Naruto was out of the office in an instant, ready to defend the school from whomever or whatever was attacking. But when he reached the stairs near the entrance hall, stopping in his tracks, he saw exactly what was happening. And it made him want to laugh.

Golden sparks were raining down from the ceiling, with green spark-dragons swimming among them as shooting stars exploded in the air. Naruto had seen fireworks many times before at the various festivals held in Konoha, but he had never seen a display so spectacular. And clearly this wasn't a threat to the school's safety; Fred and George were running around like madmen, sending up the fireworks and cackling as they went. Smiling, Naruto walked down the stairs to get a better view of the show. Apparently, the twins had been planning this for a while and finally had had enough of Umbridge's tyranny. Naruto looked around the room and spotted Usagi leaning casually against one wall. Her mask was lifted up ever so slightly, and a telltale lollipop stick was protruding out from the bottom. Somehow, the twins had convinced her; she was in on this.

By this time, Umbridge had made it to the scene to find out what all the commotion was about. When she saw what was happening, she turned a very curious shade of puce, her already bulbous eyes now looking as though they might fall from her head. That's when the real fun began.

Umbridge's attempts to stop the fireworks only heightened their effectiveness. Sparklers began to hover around her, following her when she tried to get away and zapping her every so often. The same began to happen to Malfoy and the other members of the Inquisitorial Squad, leaving the other students laughing at the comic scene.

Amid the chaos, Naruto sidled in beside Usagi, mimicking her casual stance against the wall and waiting for her to speak first.

"Technically," she said in English, confirming the use of a Blabbery Blowpop, "I'm not going against any orders."

"I didn't say you were," he responded calmly. "Why the lollipop?"

"I wanted to know exactly what she was saying."

"Fair enough." There was a pause that was anything but silent as the pyrotechnic display continued to burst around them. "Listen, what I'm going to do soon will seem very, very stupid. But it's the best way to avoid being locked up and a dog crate somewhere."

"Dumbledore was right?"

Naruto nodded. "My only other option is to continue as usual in exchange for information that we can't afford to leak. It'd not much of an option at all, really."

Her masked face tilted towards him. "And what do you propose I do after this stupid act of yours?"

"Continue to protect the school in the open until she tries to get rid of you, then bring her to find me." He smiled somewhat devilishly. "You know where I'll be."

"You have a plan?"

"No… but I will."

Usagi nodded, and Naruto looked back at what seemed to be the end of the show. Fred and George were flying high above their heads, raining down fireworks and fliers advertising their Wizard Wheezes upon the heads of the crowd of laughing students. Umbridge looked like she was having an aneurism, the frustration mounting with each missed spell that she fired into the air at the cackling twins. With one final spectacular blast of light that left behind a glowing capital letter W that was (perhaps permanently) affixed to the ceiling of the entrance hall, Fred and George Weasley had, literally, gone out with a bang.

Umbridge was still quaking with rage long after the cheers and laughter had faded and the majority of students were sticking around to find out what she'd do next (although many were ready to run in case she decided to choose more people to blame). As she shrieked at various parties, Naruto steeled himself, planned his escape route, and made his final decision.

He'd considered calling out to get her attention, but given that the crowd of students was between them, that might have caused a few innocent casualties and cause more of a scene than was strictly necessary. Instead, he slowly snaked his way through the mass of teenagers and followed her as she made her way madly back to her office. The stout witch jumped slightly when she noticed he'd followed her into the office, though he'd used no magic spells or real ninja skills (other than being surreptitious) to appear there suddenly; when she'd finally regained some of her composure, she looked at him sternly from behind her desk.

"I've considered your deal," he stated without preamble. She bristled slightly, looking at the open door with caution. Naturally, the Headmistress could not be seen striking illicit deals with students.

"And I trust you've made the right decision?" He knew exactly what she meant, but he wasn't about to give her the satisfaction.

"Yes, I have. And if you think that it's to give you the information that you want, then you're dumber than I thought." Her eyes widened and she puffed up in offense, but she seemed too stunned to respond, and so he plowed on ahead. "I'm not going to sell out my friends―" _And my employer_, he thought "―under any circumstances, especially not to someone like you."

"How unfortunate," she replied at last. "Then by order of Educational Decree Numbers Twenty-Nine and Thirty, I have reasonable grounds to expel you from this school, as well as detain you here until you tell me everything you know― by whatever means necessary."

Naruto only smiled. "Funny; you were the one who was stressing the value of information, and yet you didn't even notice that what you thought you knew about me was only part of the picture." Her eyebrows wrinkled together in apparent suspicion, but he knew she would have no time to react.

The human eye can process motion at a threshold of 30 frames per second. The average ninja moves roughly twice that. So in the span of less than one instant, Naruto seemed to have suddenly disappeared from view and reappeared behind the now terrified Umbridge without so much as a sound. His skilled hand held a kunai threateningly close to her throat.

"There are many, many things you don't know about me," he growled into her ear, "And I'll be damned if you can take me down― with or without a fight."

The words echoed around the now nearly-empty office; Naruto was gone.

* * *

**SHORT A/N, PLEASE READ!**

**I'm very sorry that I took forever to update, and I feel even worse to say that it might be a while before the next chapter comes. I'm moving into my college dorm in a week and I have no idea when and if I'll have time to write. This chapter is short (and not all that good in my eyes), but I didn't want to leave for school without updating. Thank you for understanding!**

And don't forget to review, I always appreciate it!

*******This story has been put on hiatus/is up for deletion. You can read it here, unchanged from how it was first published, for now, but it WILL NOT be updated. For some explanation, look to the top of my profile page.*******


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